Times Square Stabbing: Bank of America VP Killed, Suspect Shot Dead by Police After Four-Minute Standoff

What Happened

A woman pulled two kitchen knives from a red Target shopping bag and attacked two strangers in Times Square Monday afternoon, killing one and seriously wounding the other before being shot and killed by police. The attack unfolded near West 41st Street and Seventh Avenue around 4:24 p.m. and was over within minutes. Both stabbings happened approximately 20 seconds apart.

The Victims

The first person attacked was a 68-year-old man from Rhode Island who had just come up from the subway with his wife. He was standing on the sidewalk waiting to cross the street when the suspect approached, waved the knives, and stabbed him in the right side of his abdomen. He was rushed to Bellevue Hospital and remained in stable condition Monday evening.
The second victim was Erin Piacenti, 32, of Chester, New Jersey. She was stabbed in the abdomen within seconds of the first attack. She was transported to Bellevue Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Piacenti was a vice president at Bank of America in New York City, serving in the bank’s Business Selection and Conflicts division. She had been in Times Square during the afternoon hours when the attack occurred.

The Suspect

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch identified the suspect as Pamela Cisneros, 49, of Queens. Witnesses told investigators that Cisneros was heard saying “I’m over this, I’m over this” moments before pulling the knives from her bag. After the second stabbing, she fled north on Seventh Avenue toward an NYPD substation between West 42nd and West 43rd streets.
Officers confronted her there. What followed was a four-minute standoff. Tisch said officers repeatedly ordered Cisneros to drop the weapons and attempted to talk her down. She refused. She told the officers directly: “I’m not dropping anything. I would rather kill both of you. I will kill you.”
Officers deployed Tasers twice. Both failed to subdue her. As Cisneros advanced toward the officers with both knives still in hand, two officers discharged their service weapons. Cisneros was struck and taken to Bellevue Hospital, where she later died. Two large knives were recovered at the scene.

Mental Health History

Tisch said Cisneros had a documented mental health history with the NYPD going back to incidents in 2018 and 2019. She had no criminal record and no prior arrests. Police said the attack appeared to be random and unprovoked. Tisch described Cisneros as emotionally disturbed. Investigators said the incident is not being treated as terrorism.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani thanked the officers who responded and said an internal investigation would be conducted into the police-involved shooting. Body-worn camera footage from the incident will be released to the public.

The Scene

Times Square was packed with tourists and afternoon commuters when the attack happened. Five people were taken to hospitals in total — the two stabbing victims, two police officers who were treated for minor injuries, and Cisneros. Multiple witnesses captured cell phone video of the confrontation between Cisneros and officers, showing her swinging her arms and moving toward them with the knives raised before the shots were fired.
Source: CBS News New York, NBC New York, ABC News, Fox News, ABC7 New York, NY1