A naked, knife-wielding madman went on a bloody rampage in his own Washington Heights building today, stabbing a defenseless elderly neighbor in the eye and two others before turning the knife on himself, cops said.
The savage attacks began at about 4:10 p.m. when Christian Falero, 23, allegedly started knocking on doors on the second floor of 870 Riverside Dr. and stabbed anyone who answered.
Neighbor Maurice Samuels, 31, said Falero was screaming incoherently.
“This guy was yelling out ‘If not 666, it’s 777! Kill me please! Do me a favor, kill me please!'” Samuels said.
Most seriously injured was an elderly woman, identified only as Margarita, who was stabbed in the eye.
“This is a disaster. I saw her walking her dog just this morning. We said hello. And now this,” said a stunned friend of the elderly woman. “It was such a good family. Our sons grew up together.”
Cops said Falero, who lived on the fifth floor with his family, stabbed two other elderly victims and punched a fourth – and then fled the building and ran south to West 158th Street, where a witness said Falero stabbed himself. He was in stable condition last night.
“I saw some naked guy running down the street with a knife, it was 5 or 6 inches long, a kitchen knife,” said Adolfo Benitez, who works in a building down the block.
Cops from the 33rd Precinct grabbed the deranged suspect at about 5:15. His mother showed up later and was interviewed by cops.
Margarita and another victim were rushed to the emergency room at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital, while two others were taken to Harlem Hospital.
A neighbor who knows the suspect said he had mental issues and speculated that today’s earthquake may have played a role.
“I believe it was the earthquake and he was probably not on his medications,” Anthony Louis said.
Additional reporting by Lisa Riordan Seville