Yonkers Police Make Arrest In Dunkin' Donuts Slashing Rampage

MOUNT VERNON, NY — A man who terrorized and slashed three people, apparently at random, was arrested soon after, according to police.

Just after 4 p.m. on Thursday, the Yonkers Police Department began getting reports that several people had been slashed near a Palisade Avenue business. City surveillance camera video was reviewed in real-time by detectives and crime analysts in the AWARE Crime Control Center. Police soon had a description of the suspect. Units responding to the scene located and apprehended the suspect before he could leave the area.

Police are identifying the suspect behind the attacks as Eric Ali. A broken pair of scissors used in the assault was found on the 35-year-old Yonkers man, according to police.

Yonkers police located two victims in the area with lacerations, including a 41-year-old man with a laceration to the left side of his head and a 61-year-old man with a laceration to the left side of his face and lip. Both victims were taken to the hospital and are in stable condition, according to officials.

A third victim, a 35-year-old man with a laceration to the right side of his head, was already at the hospital. Cops said he left the scene prior to their arrival and went to the hospital on his own. He is also in listed stable condition.

"I commend our Yonkers Police Officers for moving swiftly to rapidly capture this subject," Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano said in a statement. "I know these isolated incidents have certainly increased public concern this week, but I want to remind residents that our Yonkers Police Department has handled these incidents with skilled training, care, and concern. I applaud our Officers for their swift action and continued service to keep our City safe."

Detectives from the Major Case Squad, the Crime Scene Unit, and the Digital Forensics Unit responded to the scene to investigate this incident. Investigators say Ali approached the first victim inside the business on Palisade Avenue, slashing him. Ali then exited the business and slashed a second man, then approached a bystander, slashing this third man as well.

"We are thankful that due to the number of Officers we have concentrated in our downtown business district, we were on the scene quickly and able to put a stop to this violent attack and apprehend the perpetrator," Police Commissioner Christopher Sapienza said. "This individual will now have to answer for his heinous act in the court system."

Ali was charged with three counts of assault and remains in custody. He was scheduled to be arraigned in Yonkers Criminal Court on Friday morning.