NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – A 24-year-old man was stabbed to death outside a migrant shelter site on Randall’s Island on Saturday evening, and the police quickly got a suspect in custody, the NYPD said.
At 7:27 p.m. on Saturday, police discovered a 24-year-old man who was knifed in the torso at 600 East 125th Street on Randall’s Island. The location is a large-scale emergency humanitarian relief center that began construction in August 2023.
The victim, identified by police as Dafren Canizalez, was taken to NYC Health + Hospital/Harlem and pronounced dead at 8:13 p.m.
Authorities said that investigators took a man into custody who was found at the scene with a knife.
This suspect was identified by police as Moises Coronado, 27, of 50 East River Lane, an address that is part of the migrant center. He was charged with murder, police announced Sunday afternoon.
Canizalez was also a resident of the shelter at 50 East River Lane on Randall's Island.
It is unclear what occurred to prompt the stabbing.
The investigation is ongoing.
This was the second violent incident at a migrant shelter that occurred on Saturday. In the morning, two officers were injured while “performing their duties” in a crowd of hundreds of migrants outside an East Village re-intake center. Two people were detained in relation to that incident, police said.
"The incident that happened at our Randall’s Island humanitarian relief center is a tragedy and currently under investigation. At least one alleged person responsible is currently in custody and our security – who acted admirably and professionally in this incredibly difficult situation – is redoubling their efforts to ensure that everyone on site continues to be and feels safe. The overwhelming majority of migrants in our care came to our city in search of a better life and the American Dream. The small number of those disrupting that journey for the rest of the migrants in our care by acting violently will face enforcement to the fullest extent of the law," a spokesperson for City Hall said in a statement.