What to Know
- A man allegedly hit his ex-wife with his car, then ran her over with her own car and slashed her with a machete, law enforcement sources say
- It happened on Ellsworth Avenue in the Bronx around 7 a.m. Thursday; the victim was pronounced dead at a hospital
- The victim has been identified as 58-year-old Noelia Mateo; cops have apprehended her husband, Victor Mateo, they said Friday
Authorities have arrested the man wanted in connection with the brutal murder of his wife, who law enforcement sources say was hit with two cars before being slashed with a machete multiple times.
The NYPD said Friday that 63-year-old Victor Mateo was apprehended in Hazelton, Pennsylvania, a day earlier -- a combined effort by the U.S. Marshals Regional Task Force and Pennsylvania State Police. An extradition hearing is expected later Friday.
Authorities had been looking for Mateo for a week in the slaying of 58-year-old Noelia Mateo, who was killed outside her own home on Oct. 3.
Cops found the woman unconscious, with severe trauma to her body, when they responded to 911 call on Ellsworth Avenue around 7 a.m. that day. Police sources said that shewas run down by her ex-husband in his car on Ellsworth Avenue, and then the man got into her car and ran over her as she was on the street. After she was struck multiple times by the cars, witnesses said the woman tried to crawl away, but the man wasn't done with his heinous attack yet.
He got out of his car, grabbed a machete and began stabbing her repeatedly, said witness Victor DiChristina. He also allegedly beat her with the machete as well.
DiChristina said the blade was "maybe 20 inches long," and he tried to chase the man off with a stick, but knew he wouldn't stand a chance.
Neighbors up and down the Throggs Neck road came out of their homes after hearing the crashes and the woman's screams, with some witnessing the horrific final act of evil the ex-husband allegedly unleashed on the victim in front of her grandchildren.
They say the apparent killing happened after some sort of argument, though the details of that fight weren't immediately clear.
Victoria Mateo is described as being about 5 feet 9 inches tall and 160 pounds with salt and pepper hair. Anyone with information about him is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
