A manhunt is underway for a suspect who beat a 53-year-old man to death with a two-by-four in a Queens park early Tuesday.
The NYPD responded to Rufus King Park in Jamaica around 8:40 a.m. After receiving reports of an assault in progress. Officers arrived to find the victim suffering from severe head trauma inflicted with a piece of lumber.
The unidentified man was transported to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Police have withheld his identity pending notification of family members.
Law enforcement sources told The Post that the attacker appears to have grabbed the two-by-four from a nearby pile of debris before striking the victim. The two men allegedly knew each other, though investigators have not disclosed any potential motive for the killing.
The brutal daylight slaying has rattled locals accustomed to feeling secure in the green space. “This is a park I go to all the time,” resident Ami Mulbah said-TV News. “It’s usually super safe. I’m actually quite shocked that there was a homicide.”
The park has seen prior incidents involving the same type of improvised weapon. Another regular visitor, Gabriela Soto, said-TV News that she flagged down police earlier this summer after spotting a strange woman threatening park goers with a two-by-four.
“She was trying to just get someone,” Soto said.
Police have not released any description of the male suspect or indicated whether they have identified persons of interest in the case. The investigation remains active as detectives work to determine what precipitated the fatal confrontation.
The killing marks the latest episode of violence in city parks that has left residents on edge. For a space described by frequent visitors as typically safe, the sudden eruption of deadly assault has disrupted the morning routines of those who rely on the Jamaica green space for recreation and respite.
Authorities are asking anyone with information about the attack to contact the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers hotline as the search for the assailant continues.