A man arrested for allegedly murdering a 74-year-old woman found with her hands and feet bound on the floor of her Upper West Side apartment this week may have worked in the same building where she was discovered.
Officials announced Saturday the arrest of Lashawn Mackey, a 47-year-old now facing charges of murder, attempted murder and burglary. Any potential motive in the case, or details about what led up to the killing, are still unknown.
Maria Hernandez was discovered late Wednesday by a sister who also lives at the West 83rd Street apartment building. Maria Terrero found her sister bound and gagged inside her ransacked apartment.
"Wow, I'm still in shock. I can't believe it. It's the most terrifying moment of my life," Terrero said.
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Terrero had gone upstairs to check on her sister after Hernandez's daughter called to say she had not heard from her mother.
Police and EMS responded around 10 p.m. and found Hernandez face down on the bedroom floor with clothes piled on top of her, officials told News 4. Her injuries included fractures and external bruising across her body.
"I find her in the bedroom on the floor, her body covered with all this stuff, I almost can't see her. It's terrible, it's traumatizing, it's unbelievable," said Terrero.
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The medical examiner will determine her cause of death.
Homicide detectives looking into Hernandez's death faced a perplexy obstacle: the building's surveillance system had been ripped out from the basement. Investigators began an extended video cancass of ring cameras and other exterior cameras in the immediate area hoping to get a glimpse of the intruder.
Hernandez was a mother and grandmother known in the neighborhood for taking walks with her sister and another friend.
"I think I'm living a very bad dream right now. That's the only thing I can say. I trust the authorities, I know they're working very hard. I believe they'll get the justice for her," Terrero said.
