NYPD Has 'Person Of Interest' In UWS Murder, Police Say

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — Police have identified a "person of interest" in connection with the grisly slashing death of a 70-year-old woman on the Upper West Side, NYPD officials said Monday.

A woman who lives in the same West End Avenue building as the victim is wanted for questioning in relation to the murder but has not been taken into police custody, NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea told reporters Monday. While the investigation is preliminary, Shea believes "all the pieces of that puzzle are within that building."

Police are investigating a possible relationship between the victim and person of interest, Shea said.

Around 4 a.m. Sunday, Susan Trott was found suffering a slash wound to the neck inside her apartment on West End Avenue and West 95th Street, police said. Officers responded to the building to check on Trott after a business associate called for a wellness check, police said.

An autopsy conducted Monday revealed that Trott's death was caused by the slash wound, Shea said. The death is considered a homicide.

The murder marks the third on the Upper West Side this year, according to crime statistics from the NYPD's 20th and 24th precincts. All three murders have occurred within the confines of the 24th Precinct, which spans West 86th Street to West 110th Street.

There were just four murders reported on the Upper West Side in 2017, according to NYPD crime statistics.

Photo by NYPD