Watch: Woman with mental health history charges at NYPD officers with kitchen knives before being shot
A woman who stabbed two people in New York City’s Times Square before being shot by police charged at officers wielding two kitchen knives and refused repeated demands to surrender, authorities said. The investigators ruled out any immediate indication that the attack was terrorism-related.The 49-year-old Queens woman was confronted by NYPD officers shortly after stabbing a 32-year-old woman and a 68-year-old man on Monday afternoon. The younger woman died from her injuries, while the man remained in stable condition.The dramatic confrontation unfolded near an NYPD substation outside One Times Square, where officers spent several minutes attempting to persuade the woman to put down the weapons, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.The woman instead told officers, “I’m not dropping anything, I would rather kill both of you,” Tisch said.Police then used a Taser, but it failed to incapacitate her. Video recorded by bystanders showed the woman subsequently moving towards the officers while waving the knives.Two officers opened fire, striking the woman. She fell to the ground and was handcuffed by police, while officers administered first aid. She was later pronounced dead.Despite the apparently random nature of the attack and the violent confrontation that followed, police said there was no evidence to suggest that the incident was a terrorist attack.Tisch said the woman had a “documented mental health history with the NYPD”, including incidents in 2018 and 2019. She did not have an arrest history with the department, and police have not disclosed further details about her mental health history.The attack began when the woman pulled two knives from a shopping bag and stabbed the 68-year-old man in the abdomen as he waited to cross the street with his wife after emerging from a subway station. Seconds later, she stabbed the 32-year-old woman, also in the abdomen.Both victims were taken to hospital. Police have not identified them as authorities continue to notify their relatives.“This was an extraordinarily dangerous situation unfolding in the heart of Times Square, the crossroads of the world,” Tisch said.NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani and Tisch praised the officers who confronted the woman, saying their actions helped prevent the situation from escalating further in one of the city’s busiest tourist areas.“We know that those families’ lives have been shattered by what took place today, and we will continue to hold them close as the hours and days and weeks continue from this moment,” Mamdani said.Police temporarily shut part of 7th Avenue and urged the public to stay away from the area as investigators examined the scene.The incident came as violent crime continues to decline across New York City. Homicides are down 24% so far this year and are on course to potentially reach their lowest level in decades.It was, however, the second fatal stabbing in Times Square this year. A man was killed in a stabbing in the same area in May.
