A Bank of America employee was killed in a stabbing in Times Square on Monday afternoon by a woman armed with two knives.
Erin Piacenti, 32, was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital from stabbing injuries, the New York City Police Department confirmed Tuesday. Piacenti was a vice president of business selection and conflicts at the bank, according to her LinkedIn profile.
“We are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague,” a Bank of America spokesperson said in a statement.
“She was a valued teammate who will be greatly missed. Our hearts go out to her family and all of her loved ones.”
In a Monday press conference, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch described the attack, which happened around 4:30 p.m., as “random and unprovoked.” Another victim was injured, and the suspect died at the scene.
Police said the attacker, Pamela Cisneros, approached a 68-year-old in Times Square and stabbed him in the abdomen with two knives. He is at the hospital in stable condition.
Twenty seconds later, Cisneros stabbed Piacenti. Cisneros was then shot dead by police after she refused to put down two large knives.
Tisch said that Cisnerno had no prior arrests but a “documented mental illness history” and showed two separate encounters with her in 2018 and 2019.
The investigation remains ongoing by the NYPD Force Investigation Division.
Bank of America’s New York headquarters is at One Bryant Park in Midtown, near where the stabbings happened on West 42nd Street and 7th Avenue.
