An incident unfolded in a Queens neighborhood yesterday, where a man is in custody after law enforcement officials allege he fatally stabbed his mother-in-law and attacked his teen brother-in-law before igniting a fire in their home. The NYPD reported the apprehension of the suspect in connection with the violence that resulted in the death of 50-year-old Qiujin Shi, according to Gothamist.
Officers discovered Shi, an East Flushing resident, with multiple stab wounds to her abdomen at her residence on Smart Street near 45th Avenue. She was transported in critical condition to NewYork-Presbyterian Queens Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. A 17-year-old boy was also found stabbed and is expected to survive his injuries. The assailant himself sustained serious stab wounds and was found in serious condition at the hospital, police said. While a domestic issue is believed to have spurred the violence, the man has yet to be charged as of this morning.
The attack reportedly arose from marital problems, with the man going through a divorce at the time of the incident. He allegedly attacked Shi and her son, both of whom suffered multiple stab wounds. The suspect, who had been drinking before the assault, proceeded to set a mattress on fire, further endangering the lives of others in the home. This information was sourced from The New York Post. The fire department quickly brought the blaze under control, and medical workers treated eight people at the scene, including first responders.
Siblings Guqing Zhang and Rouxin Lin, who were in the basement during the incident, recalled feeling sheer panic when they became aware of the violence unfolding above them. "We were in the basement when everything was happening," said Zhang, explaining that the commotion upstairs broke through the immersion of his VR headset. Lin, his sister, added, "I saw my cousin sitting on the staircase, bleeding, blood all over his body." Lin also emphasized that despite hearsay regarding a divorce, there were no signs of fighting prior, noting that the family had always seemed calm, the siblings' statements were provided to The New York Post.
