The suspect charged in a wild stabbing spree that left four dead and four injured says his mind "isn't right."
Maksim Gelman spoke to reporters Tuesday from the jail ward of Bellevue Hospital and described conspiracy theories about government plots against him.
"The DEA set me up. They let this happen. They were there the whole time," Gelman told reporters.
The Daily News said Gelman spoke with reporters for three minutes in a barely-audible whisper, refusing to make eye contact.
"I'm in a lot of pain. I've been hurting," he said. "I've been beaten. They tied me up. They choked me at the precinct."
The 23-year-old with a history of drug and graffiti arrests was arraigned on charges of second-degree murder, robbery and assault, and did not enter a plea.
He acquired a new lawyer on Monday, who has declined to comment on the case. While being transported to his arraignment, Gelman shouted to onlookers that he is the victim of a "setup."
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Meanwhile, friends and family gathered Tuesday to mourn the deaths of two of his alleged victims.
Loved ones clutched each other and wept as caskets carrying Yelena Bulshenko and her mother, Anna Bulshenko, were carried from a memorial chapel in Brooklyn.
One friend of Yelena sadly recalled the 20-year-old's sunny personality. Published reports say she was killed because she had rebuffed Gelman's advances.
"She was so happy, and this was just such a tragedy," the friend said.
Funeral flowers adorned the service, a sad reminder that just a day earlier, Valentine's Day roses had arrived at Yelena Bulshenko's workplace, sent by her boyfriend, Gerard Honig, before she was killed.
