Top Bank Executive Killed In Times Square Stabbing Spree

A Bank of America executive was identified as the victim who was killed by an “emotionally disturbed” woman who went on a stabbing rampage in New York City’s Times Square on Monday.

Erin Piacenti, Bank of America’s 32-year-old vice president of Business Selection and Conflicts, was killed in the stabbing, the U.S. banking giant confirmed on Tuesday.

“We are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague. She was a valued teammate who will be greatly missed. Our hearts go out to her family and all of her loved ones,” the company said in a statement to Reuters.

Piacenti died at a hospital from her stab wounds, according to Bloomberg. Authorities said the stabbing spree appeared to be random.

Piacenti had served as Bank of America’s vice president of business selection and conflicts for nearly two years, according to her LinkedIn profile. Piacenti earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and graduated from Fordham University School of Law. She and her husband had just celebrated their second wedding anniversary last month, The New York Post reported.  

Police fatally shot the attacker, 49-year-old Pamela Cisneros, whom they described as emotionally disturbed after she stabbed Piacenti and a man during a knife attack in Times Square on Monday, The Daily Wire reported.  

The attack unfolded around 4:30 p.m. near West 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue. Cisneros, from Queens, had previous outbursts related to her mental state, according to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch. 

The male victim, who has not been identified, was reportedly hospitalized in critical condition. Videos posted on social media show the knife-wielding woman lunging toward several NYPD officers as they repeatedly order her to drop her weapons. Officers tased her as she continued to move toward them.

Cisneros reportedly appeared to be emotionally disturbed and was armed with two kitchen knives. She refused repeated commands to drop the weapons when officers confronted her near an NYPD substation.

“During the encounter, she told the officers, ‘I’m not dropping anything. I would rather kill both of you.’ She repeated, ‘I will kill you,’” Tish said during a press briefing.

A photo captured by the New York Post near the scene showed an officer holding a kitchen knife recovered from the area. In videos posted to social media, the woman identified as Cisneros wore jeans, a pink shirt, and a brown bag over her shoulder, and appeared to be gripping a large knife in each hand. 

Police have not provided any information about her motive, but they do not believe that it was an act of terrorism. 

The incident comes just weeks after another stabbing near Times Square in which a man was stabbed in the head during an argument inside a subway station.