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Naked Knife-Wielding Man Kills One in Quadruple Stabbing

By Ben Fractenberg | August 23, 2011 5:51pm | Updated on August 23, 2011 11:57pm

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — A naked man went on a horrific stabbing rampage Tuesday, killing an elderly man and slashing four others at a Riverside Drive apartment building, authorities said.

Witnesses saw the knife-wielding man, Christian Falero, 23, covered in blood and ranting in the streets after he stabbed four people, one fatally, inside a building at 870 Riverside Dr., near W. 158th Street, about 4 p.m., the NYPD said.

Ignacio Reyes-Collazo, 81, died after being stabbed multiple times in the head and chest inside a second-floor apartment, police said. He was taken to St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital and pronounced dead.

The alleged killer also stabbed a 75-year-old woman multiple times in the same apartment, a 60-year-old woman in the chest and eye, and an 85-year-old woman multiple times, police said

Falero was caught by police after running on the streets naked with his tongue hanging out and arms outstretched, witnesses said.

The 60-year-old woman was taken to St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital in critical condition, police said.

The two others were taken to Harlem Hospital in stable condition. Another woman, 22, was punched in the face and taken to Harlem Hospital in stable condition.

The motive for the attacks was not immediately clear, police said.

Witnesses said they saw Falero covered in blood running down Riverside Drive. He was carrying a foot-long kitchen knife and yelling about how the world was going to end, witnesses said.

Falero got on the ground when police showed up with guns drawn and handcuffed him, witnesses explained.

His hands and feet were also covered in blood, noted Maurice Samuels, 31, who lives in the building next door. He said he heard Falero shouting as police were arresting him.

Falero, who has no previous arrests, was taken to St. Luke’s-Roosevelt hospital for psychiatric evaluation and treatment. According to Paul Browne,spokesman for the NYPD, criminal charges against him depend on the evaluation, the New York Times reported.

Part of Riverside Drive was blocked off as police investigated the incident.

A neighbor said police often visited the floor of alleged attacker and that other residents of the building told his mother they were concerned about him.

The neighbor added that the two people attacked in the same apartment were a husband and wife who lived in the building for 30 years.

"I'm so sad, [They're] great people," said Jackie Rowe-Adams, 63, who is also co-founder of the anti-violence group Harlem Mothers S.A.V.E. "They watched all our kids grow up."