'Armed And Dangerous' Serial Stabber Prompts NYC Manhunt: Police

NEW YORK CITY — An "armed and dangerous" serial stabber is the target of a citywide manhunt after NYPD officials said he knifed at least five people.

The same unidentified man — described as carrying a hunting knife and talking to himself — has been linked to stabbings in Queens over the past nine days that culminated Wednesday in three consecutive attacks in the span of an hour, police officials said.

Many attacks were eerily similar: victims recounted feeling as if they were punched from behind, only to discover they were knifed, police said. The stabber could be heard muttering to himself and, in one case, laughed in a victim's face afterward.

"These are senseless, unprovoked attacks," said NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban during a late afternoon news conference Wednesday.

Watch as Police Commissioner Caban & NYPD executives brief the media regarding an investigation throughout the city. https://t.co/nhTCyRAoRF
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) January 17, 2024

The five attacks unfolded in southern Queens and appeared centered around Rochdale, police said.

One further attack — a Wednesday morning stabbing on a J train in Williamsburg — could also be linked to the stabber, but investigators have not drawn a definitive link, said Joseph Kenny, the NYPD's chief of detectives.

What attacks police are certainly linked to the man began Jan. 8 about 6:20 p.m., when a 61-year-old man walked near 137th Avenue and 157th Street, Kenny said.

The man suddenly felt as if he was punched in the back, but discovered instead he was stabbed and came face-to-face with his attacker, Kenny said.

"In this incident the suspect actually laughed in the victim’s face after he stabbed him," he said.

The man went to Jamaica Hospital for treatment for a punctured kidney, Kenny said.

The attacks continued early Tuesday, when a 34-year-old woman walking home near 158th Street and 134th Avenue felt like she was punched from behind, Kenny said.

She realized that she was actually stabbed in her right side by a man who was talking to himself, Kenny said.

Back-to-back attacks followed Wednesday morning, police said.

About 7:30 a.m., the attacker stabbed a 71-year-old walking with his wife in the back, Kenny said.

The stabber then ran off 134th Avenue and ended up on 161st Street, where he crossed paths with his next victim six minutes later, authorities said.

The victim — a 41-year-old man — had just stepped outside to move his car when the attacker stabbed him in the abdomen, Kenny said.

Twenty-five minutes later, the stabber was on an MTA bus headed north near Parsons Boulevard and Archer Avenue, Kenny said.

The knife-wielding man began arguing with a fellow passenger over a seat — a dispute that carried on as both left the bus, Kenny said. The assailant then stabbed the passenger, a 36-year-old man on his way to work, he said.

"We have confirmed that the perpetrator in all of these incidents is connected," Kenny said.

The stabbings prompted a heavy police presence and a public request for help identifying the perpetrator.

The man is described as 5 feet, 6 inches tall, slim and with braids in his hair. He was seen wearing a green jacket, a black hooded sweatshirt and either white Converse shoes or black-and-white Adidas.

He has been spotted wearing a lanyard and a surgical mask, officials said.

"Someone knows him & he MUST be stopped," tweeted Jeffrey Maddrey, the NYPD's chief of department, in a plea for the public's help.

UPDATE: Take a close look ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/cneRV8vmLi
— NYPD Chief of Department (@NYPDChiefOfDept) January 17, 2024

Police have released video and photographs that shows a man clutching a knife.

The individual pictured below is WANTED for four unprovoked stabbing incidents that occurred in the Rochdale Village area of Queens.

Have you seen him? DM @NYPDTips or call 800-577-TIPS. https://t.co/RNZkAm8plq pic.twitter.com/ZcAY0qDPih
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) January 17, 2024