Accused MoMA Stabber Extradited To NYC After 9 Months

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — The irate patron accused of stabbing two employees at the Museum of Modern Art in March was finally extradited from Pennsylvania to New York City on Tuesday to face charges of attempted murder, police said.

Gary Cabana, 60, arrived from Philadelphia, where he had arrived as a fugitive following the March 12 attack, according to authorities.

The extradition process "took longer than expected" in the ensuing months, an NYPD spokesperson said.

Cabana lived near Times Square and worked as a Broadway usher. His mental health had been deteriorating during the pandemic, friends told Gothamist, and Cabana reportedly described himself as having bipolar disorder.

A longtime MoMA patron, Cabana's museum membership had been revoked the day prior to the attack due to two recent instances of "disorderly conduct," police said at the time.

That afternoon, after being denied entry to the West 53rd Street museum, Cabana allegedly leaped over the reception desk and repeatedly stabbed a male and a female worker, both 24 years old — an attack captured in surveillance footage. (The footage below may be disturbing.)

Though police said that surveillance footage recorded the assault and showed Cabana leaving the museum, he still eluded capture for days. Three days after the attack, he was finally taken into custody at a bus terminal in Philadelphia, after police received reports that he may have set a fire at a nearby hotel room, according to NBC Philadelphia.

During the manhunt, Cabana continued to post on an Instagram account identified by multiple outlets as belonging to him.

"Sadly there will be no more stabbings to entertain you," he wrote the day before his arrest, in response to a user who had commented on a previous post.

"If U want to see some FUN murderers go see CHICAGO THE MUSICAL on the Bway. Or go snorkeling with the NYPD divers who are frantically searching for the KNIFE that I threw off the BK Bridge on my way home to EBK."

Besides attempted murder, Cabana faces two charges of assault, police said.

Related coverage:

• MoMA Stabbing Suspect Arrested In Philly After Arson: Reports
• MoMA Stabbing Suspect Brags Of Attack As Search Continues
• MoMA Employees Stabbed By Disgruntled Patron, Police Say