{"id":335433,"date":"2026-09-02T00:43:07","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T00:43:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/335433\/"},"modified":"2026-09-02T00:43:07","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T00:43:07","slug":"victim-fatally-stabbed-by-woman-in-times-square-nypd-shooting-idd-as-erin-piacenti-of-nj","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/335433\/","title":{"rendered":"Victim fatally stabbed by woman in Times Square NYPD shooting ID’d as Erin Piacenti of NJ"},"content":{"rendered":"

The mother of a newborn randomly murdered<\/a> by a mentally ill woman on a stabbing spree in Times Square has been identified as a vice president at Bank of America who recently celebrated her two-year wedding anniversary.<\/p>\n

Erin Piacenti, 32, of Chester, N.J., died in Monday afternoon\u2019s bloody rampage when Pamela Cisneros, a 49-year-old Queens woman with a history of mental illness, pulled two kitchen knives out of a Target bag and started stabbing strangers.<\/p>\n

Piacenti had given birth to a daughter five months ago and had just returned to work following her maternity leave, alumni at Piacenti\u2019s law school told the Daily News.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague,\u201d a Bank of America spokesperson said Tuesday. \u201cShe was a valued teammate who will be greatly missed. Our hearts go out to her family and all of her loved ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ErinErin Piacenti, pictured here at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2019, died after Pamela Cisneros pulled two kitchen knives out of a Target bag and started randomly stabbing strangers in Times Square on Monday. (Tiffany Sage \/ BFA.com \/ Shutterstock)<\/p>\n

Piacenti worked as a Vice President for Business Selection and Conflicts for Bank of America, which is headquartered about a block from where she was killed. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, where according to her Facebook page she sang with Penn Dischord, an a cappella group at the school.<\/p>\n

Her solo performances \u2014 \u201cLove Me Harder\u201d<\/a> and \u201cBreak Free\u201d<\/a> by Ariana Grande, and \u201cHold My Hand\u201d<\/a> by Jess Glynne \u2014 were posted to the group\u2019s YouTube channel in 2014 and 2015.<\/p>\n

Piacenti graduated magna cum laude from Fordham University School of Law, where she met her husband, fellow student Frank Piacenti, and was inducted into the school\u2019s Order of the Coif, according to a statement released by Fordham Law Dean Joseph Landau.<\/p>\n

\u201cErin was a vibrant and cherished member of the Fordham Law family. During her time at Fordham, she distinguished herself through her academic devotion, sharp legal mind, warmth, and generosity to her peers,\u201d\u00a0 Landau said in the statement. \u201cTo lose a member of our community so suddenly and under such heartbreaking circumstances is a devastating shock.\u201d<\/p>\n

NJ State Sen. Holly Schepisi, the former president of the Fordham Law Alumni Association of NJ, had learned in conversations with other alumni that Piacenti had recently returned to work at Bank of America following her daughter\u2019s baptism and was \u201ca very bright light in the legal community with an incredibly promising future ahead of her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just a terrible situation for her loved ones, for her colleagues, for the Fordham Law community, for her child who will never have an opportunity to know her mother,\u201d Schepisi said.<\/p>\n

Social media posts show her walking down the aisle with her husband in August 2024.<\/p>\n

A devastated relative declined to comment when reached by The News Tuesday. \u201cNo, no, this is not the time, I\u2019m sorry,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Cisneros first attacked a 68-year-old man waiting to cross the street with his wife at W. 41st St. near Seventh Ave. at 4:24 p.m., cops said, plunging a knife in his abdomen. He survived.<\/p>\n

Within 20 seconds, she headed north to W. 42nd St. and attacked Piacenti, stabbing her in the abdomen as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was crossing at 42nd St. I saw a guy bleeding profusely from his right leg. He was gushing blood, saying, \u2018I need help. Help me,\u2019\u201d said witness Linda Ruiz, 58.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to get a cop on the corner and there was another lady on the floor \u2026 There was a lot of blood. She wasn\u2019t conscious. The police were trying to resuscitate her. But she wasn\u2019t moving. It was horrible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AA woman (main, in pink) was shot by NYPD cops after refusing to drop two knives (inset) she was swinging as she approached them in Times Square Monday. (Courtesy of Jorge Disla; Barry Williams \/ New York Daily News)<\/p>\n

Police surrounded Cisneros near an NYPD substation by W. 43rd St.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not dropping anything. I would rather kill both of you. I will kill you,\u201d she told the officers during a tense four-minute standoff, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday. Police tried to subdue her with a Taser before officers opened fire, killing her.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was an extraordinarily dangerous situation unfolding in the heart of Times Square, the crossroads of the world,\u201d said Tisch. \u201cOur officers were confronted with a rapidly evolving threat with countless innocent people around them. In that moment, they did what we trained them to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AA woman was shot by NYPD cops after refusing to drop two knives she was swinging as she approached them in Times Square Monday at Seventh Ave. and W. 43rd St. (Barry Williams \/ New York Daily News)<\/p>\n

Startling cell phone videos shot by bystanders show Cisneros pinwheeling her arms and swinging the knives as she charged at the officers. Pops and an electrical current can be heard just before the officers\u2019 gunshots ring out.<\/p>\n

Both the stabbing victims and the suspect were taken to Bellevue Hospital, where Piacenti and her killer died, according to sources.<\/p>\n

\"PamelaPamela Cisneros (pictured) was fatally shot by NYPD officers after refusing to drop two knives she was swinging as she approached them in Times Square Monday, Aug. 31, 2026, at Seventh Ave. and W. 43rd St. in Midtown Manhattan.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ask New Yorkers to join me in holding the victim in our thoughts and wishing them a full recovery,\u201d Mayor Mamdani said of the survivor, who lives in Rhode Island, at the Times Square press briefing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to thank the NYPD officers who stepped in and prevented a horrific attack from becoming even worse. This is what the men and women of this department do every day to keep this city safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tisch said Cisneros has a history of mental health issues, including incidents in 2018 and 2019. Cisneros has no criminal record in New York City, according to Tisch, who declined to provide details regarding the suspect\u2019s mental health.<\/p>\n

\"OfficialsOfficials speak during a press conference after a police-involved shooting in Times Square on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026 in Manhattan, New York. (Barry Williams\/ New York Daily News)<\/p>\n

Police recovered two knives from the scene.<\/p>\n

New York City has struggled with the care and treatment of the mentally ill for years. The shutdown of large-scale psychiatric institutions left a void in the system as the community-based care network that was supposed to fill the gap is widely seen as inadequate and underfunded.<\/p>\n

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