Serial stabber who killed sleeping homeless man and attacked two others in Manhattan parks indicted
The serial stabber who killed one homeless man and attacked two others while they were sleeping on park benches was indicted in a New York City court Tuesday.
Trevon Murphy, 40, who is homeless, was charged with murder, attempted murder and assault as a judge in Manhattan Supreme Court ordered he be given a mental health evaluation before he takes the stand.
Murphy was arrested and taken to the 28th Precinct after he was arrested near St. Nicolas Park in Manhattan’s West Harlem in July.
Prosecutors have said that Murphy admitted to the stabbings, even saying he would attack his victims in a specific area in the lower abdomen in an attempt to ‘drag pieces of intestine’ out of them, according to the New York Post.
A Good Samaritan turned Murphy into two NYPD officers who were standing on the corner near the bus stop the assailant was sitting at near West 28th Street and St. Nicolas Avenue in mid-July.
The serial stabber who killed one homeless man and attacked two others while they were sleeping on park benches was indicted in a New York City court Tuesday
Trevon Murphy, 40, who is homeless, was charged with murder, attempted murder and assault as a judge in Manhattan Supreme Court ordered he be given a mental health evaluation before he takes the stand
Murphy was arrested and taken to the 28th Precinct after he was arrested near St. Nicolas Park in Manhattan’s West Harlem in July
The man attacked three homeless men between July 5 and July 11 all across Manhattan, in the West Village, Midtown, and the Upper East Side
Trevon Murphy, 40, who is homeless, (middle) has been arrested and taken to the 28th Precinct after he was arrested near St. Nicolas Park in Manhattan’s West Harlem. He reportedly stabbed three homeless victims across Manhattan before being taken into custody on July 13
He was walked out of an NYPD Precinct with frizzy hair, a blue ‘World’s Best Papa’ shirt, and black Adidas slides. It is unknown if Murphy has a child
He was identified through his neon sneakers, gray backpack, and his Innocence Project – a nonprofit that helps exonerate the wrongly convicted – sweatshirt. The knife he allegedly used in the attacks was also found in his left-hand pocket, the NYPD announced during a press conference.
Previously, Murphy attacked his roommate at a homeless shelter in April, who was also asleep. He was released on his own recognizance.
The homeless attacker also has an active warrant for his arrest in Tennessee for breaking probation for a narcotics charge, which Assistant Chief Joseph Kenny said will be ‘extradited.’
He was walked out of an NYPD precinct with frizzy hair, a blue ‘World’s Best Papa’ shirt, and black Adidas slides. It is unknown if Murphy has a child.
Murphy has also waved his Miranda rights and Kenny said a month ago that he is ‘speaking to us.’
Murphy (pictured after one of the attacks) waved his Miranda rights and detectives said he was ‘speaking to them’
After attacking his first victim on July 5, he was seen casually cruising around on a Citi Bike. Murphy is currently wanted in Tennessee for violating probation for a narcotics charge and was released on his own recognizance in NYC in April for an assault on his roommate in a homeless shelter
Murphy’s reign of terror began on July 5, where he attacked a sleeping homeless man, 34, on the Hudson River Park walkway in the West Village around 3.30pm. The victim was transported to Bellevue Hospital for treatment, but later succumbed to his injuries.
He was later seen casually cruising around on a Citi Bike.
Three days later, on July 8, he would attack another homeless man, 59, in the stomach while he was sleeping on a park bench in Midtown East around 10.30pm.
The victim tried to ‘self-medicate’ for two days before seeking treatment at New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical and reporting the incident to the police. He is currently in stable condition, the NYPD announced on Wednesday.
On July 11, near Stanley Playground in the affluent Upper East Side, he would attack his last victim who was sleeping inside the park near the basketball courts. Police sources told the New York Post that the victim reportedly said he felt a punch in his left side and woke up to Murphy standing over him with a knife.
He was identified by his neon shoes, gray backpack, and black hoodie (all pictured)
Police confiscated a knife (pictured) he used in the attacks from him, which was found in his left pocket
The pair reportedly knew one another and the victim only knew him as ‘Delly.’
The victim also tried to chase Murphy down, but was unable to due to his abdomen injury. The 28-year-old is currently in stable condition in the hospital, the NYPD reported.
His motive is currently unknown and he is still being questioned by police.
He has been charged with one count of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and two counts of assault.
Igdalia Torres, the sister of one of the victims, told the New York Daily News (NYDN) that she was ‘so happy’ to hear Murphy was taken into custody.
NYC Mayor Eric Adams, 61, (left) said Murphy is not a ‘reflection on New York’ and said ‘the average New Yorker gives the homeless a helping hand, they do not use their hands to assault them.’ Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell, 50, (right) said Murphy ‘preyed on the vulnerable’
‘This man was preying on the venerable,’ Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell, 50, said at a press conference in July.
She also said Murphy shouldn’t have been in the streets after his various run-ins with the law.
New York City, among other big cities, has been criticized by the public for its ‘woke’ bail policies, which have left a sense of lawlessness among citizens and allowing criminals to run the streets.
New York City has seen a spike in crime in recent years. Overall, crime is up about 37 percent compared to last year, a figure that only recently came down from the high 40s. As of July 3, over 61,000 crimes have occurred in the city, compared to 44,385 at the same time last year.
The NYPD does not publicly share statistics on the number of stabbings that happen in the Big Apple, but most major violent crime is up.
Crime is up 36.6 percent across New York City through August 7, with felony assaults up 19.5 percent
Overall crimes are up 36.6 percent across New York City, with felony assaults up 19.5 percent.
Robberies are up 39.8 percent, rapes are up 10.9 percent, though murders and shooting victims are down eight and seven percent, respectively.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, 61, has vowed to address the growing crime rates in the city by adding more police officers in subway stations and to tackle the growing gun problem.
