NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – A man seen wearing the leggings of a woman found slain at a SoHo hotel last week was arrested Monday in Arizona—after allegedly stabbing two women in that state, police said Tuesday as they worked with the feds to probe his potential connection to other crimes in multiple states.
The suspect—identified as Raad Almansoori, 26—was arrested over the weekend in connection with the two stabbings in Arizona and then linked to the New York City killing based on statements he made to investigators, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said at a news conference from police headquarters.
Almansoori is suspected of forcing a female worker into a McDonald's bathroom and stabbing her repeatedly in Surprise, Arizona, on Sunday morning. He's also suspected of stabbing another woman during an attempted carjacking in Phoenix on Saturday afternoon, according to Kenny.
Almansoori was arrested by Scottsdale police sometime Sunday and is currently being held at a jail in Maricopa County.
By the time of his arrest, he was already on the radar of the NYPD—with active alerts out—in the death of Denisse Oleas-Arancibia, a 38-year-old mother from Queens who was found dead on the morning of Feb. 8 at the SoHo 54 Hotel on Watts Street.
NYPD officers responding to a 911 call discovered her body under a blanket in a room on the 11th floor.
A bloody iron was found near her body, and police suspect her killer donned her leggings because his own pants were covered in blood.
The city medical examiner deemed Oleas-Arancibia's death a homicide Friday and said she died of blunt force trauma to the head.
Kenny said last week that a man was captured on surveillance video leaving the hotel while wearing the leggings.
"We have video of the woman arriving at the location, wearing a distinct pair of leggings," the chief said. "And later on we have a male leaving the hotel wearing the same leggings, and we also have a pair of male pants in the hotel room. There was blood all over the pants."
At Tuesday's news conference, Kenny said Almansoori has no arrest history in New York but that he has a long rap sheet outside the city, including previous arrests in Florida, Texas and Arizona, mostly for domestic violence and assault. One of his alleged crimes in Florida from April 2023 involved the kidnapping and sexual assault of a female. He posted bail on that charge in September 2023 and was released.
According to police, Almansoori bought a Jan. 26 plane ticket from Florida to New York and began using a credit card in New York starting on Jan. 29. He then visited an escort in Upper Manhattan on Feb. 6, just two days before Oleas-Arancibia's body was found Feb. 8, police said. He allegedly flew back to Arizona out of Newark on Feb. 12—five days before the violent carjacking in Phoenix.
Police said they've been in contact with the escort in Upper Manhattan as the investigation continues.
Kenny said Almansoori made incriminating statements about the SoHo killing after his arrest.
"While in the custody of Arizona law enforcement, he informs them that he is wanted for homicide in New York City and tells cops they should Google the SoHo 54 hotel," Kenny said.
The NYPD is working with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office to have Almansoori extradited to the city, a process that could take days, weeks or even months.
Police are also working with the FBI to explore the possibility he has additional victims, as he allegedly told police he "hurt three additional girls in Florida."
Almansoori reportedly faces charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault and theft in Sunday's stabbing in Surprise, as well as charges of robbery, assault, theft and criminal damage in Saturday's stabbing in Phoenix.