Washington Heights Double-Stabbing Was Murder Suicide, Pol Says

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — The deaths of two people at a Washington Heights apartment complex on New Year's Day were allegedly the result of a murder-suicide, a local elected representative said in a statement.

Police responded to the building near West 179th Street and Wadsworth Avenue around 8 a.m. on New Year's Day to find 46-year-old Pablo Castro dead on a second-floor landing and 50-year-old Yuberkis Paulino dead in her sixth-floor apartment, police said. Both were suffering stab wounds and Castro suffered from injuries related to a fall.

Investigators believe Castro stabbed Paulino to death before turning the weapon on himself and jumping from her sixth floor apartment, State Assemblymember Carmen De La Rosa said in a statement. Castro and Paulino had been dating before the murder-suicide and were estranged, according to the statement.

"Our community is saddened to have learned the tragic news of what appears at this time to be a murder-suicide case that occurred right here in our back yard. First and foremost, we extend our deepest condolences to the family of those lost in this unthinkable tragedy as they mourn an irreparable loss," De La Rosa said in a statement.

De La Rosa also called for better services for people suffering mental health problems and services for victims of domestic abuse in Upper Manhattan.

Paulino's family set up a GoFundMe fundraiser following her death. In just a few days, the fund has already raised more than $6,000 for Paulino's daughters and granddaughter.

Click here for the GoFundMe page.

Photo by Patch