Rockland Man Convicted Over Unprovoked Box-Cutter Attack

ROCKLAND COUNTY, NY — A Spring Valley man who slashed a stranger's face with a box cutter in an unprovoked attack in Haverstraw has been convicted by a jury, Rockland County District Attorney Thomas Walsh announced Monday.

Darius Williams walked toward a Haverstraw man and his wife who were on the sidewalk in the village at 6:08 p.m. July 12, 2022, prosecutors said. The 34-year-old swung the box cutter downward, sliced the man's face near his temple, and walked away.

They were not known to each other and there was no apparent provocation, prosecutors said.

Haverstraw town police investigated with assistance from the Rockland County Sheriff's Office. The Hon. Kevin Russo presided over the four-day trial.

Convicted of second-degree assault and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, both felonies, Williams is scheduled for sentencing Sept. 6. He faces up to seven years in state prison on both counts.