The A-Train Ripper who was arrested covered in blood after going on a subway stabbing spree was indicted in New York Supreme Court on Thursday for two murder charges and two assault charges.
Rigoberto Lopez, 21, had previously confessed when he was arrested for the deadly slashings which happened over the course of 14 hours beginning on February 12 along the A line of the subway system in New York City.
During the court hearing, Lopez appeared before Judge Laura Ward and sat with his head down – never looking up – as he was surrounded by his two lawyers and a Spanish interpreter.
When asked how he pleaded to his charges, Lopez remained silent.
The A-Train Ripper who was arrested covered in blood after going on a subway stabbing spree was indicted in New York Supreme Court on Thursday
Rigoberto Lopez (pictured), 21, who is mentally ill, was charged with murder and assault after confessing to the attacks
Rigoberto Lopez, 21, appeared in court for two murder charges and two assault charges
During the court hearing, Lopez appeared before Judge Laura Ward and sat with his head down – never looking up
When asked he he pleaded to his charges, Lopez remained silent during his indictment on Thursday
The court and his lawyers to agree to a ‘730’ mental health evaluation to determine whether he is fit to stand trial – a process that usually takes a couple of weeks before completion.
A lawyer for Lopez also asked the court to modify an order of protection that would allow his father to appear in the courtroom during future proceedings concerning his son. He was not present on Thursday because of the court order.
Judge Ward granted the request and remanded Lopez back to jail while he wore a bright orange jumpsuit with a Department of Corrections stamp on the back.
Lopez had been arrested while covered in blood at W. 186th St and Audubon Avenue in Washington Heights – just blocks from where the rampage began, according to the New York Daily News.
The court and his lawyers to agree to a ‘730’ mental health evaluation to determine whether he is fit to stand trial
A lawyer for Lopez also asked the court to modify an order of protection that would allow his father to appear in the courtroom
Lopez had been arrested while covered in blood at W. 186th St and Audubon Avenue in Washington Heights – just blocks from where the rampage began
Judge Ward granted the request and remanded Lopez back to jail while he wore a bright orange jumpsuit with a Department of Corrections stamp on the back
Police sources said Lopez, who is mentally ill, confessed to all of the attacks and released an image of the knife on Twitter at the time, saying: ‘The suspect was found with this knife at the time of arrest which he used on the vulnerable.’
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said that a ‘surge’ of 500 additional cops for the department’s Transit Bureau were immediately deployed across the city after the attacks started.
During a news conference announcing the initial arrest, police told reporters that the violent stabbing spree started at around 11:20am on February 12.
That’s when a 67-year-old man was stabbed by an assailant at the 181st Street A-line subway station.
The victim, who survived, told cops that his attacker had shouted ‘I am going to kill you’ before he was stabbed in the right knee and left buttock, the New York Post reported.
The next attack took place before midnight, when authorities found a man stabbed to death in his seat on the A train at the Mott Avenue station in Far Rockaway, Queens.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene of stab wounds to his neck and torso.
Just two hours later, a 44-year-old was found unconscious after she was stabbed while riding the A train at the 207th Street Station in Upper Manhattan.
Police are seen on the A line subway train bound to Inwood on Saturday looking for the subway slasher
Police released an image of the knife, saying: ‘The suspect was found with this knife at the time of arrest which he used on the vulnerable.’
The woman was rushed to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
And minutes after that, a 43-year-old man was stabbed at the A subway station on West 181st Street in Manhattan. He was rushed to hospital where he recovered.
Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, there has been an uptick in violent incidents inside the largely desolate subway stations as ridership has plummeted due to fears of getting infected.
Transit workers have been demanding that the 24-hour subway schedule be resumed after several reported being assaulted during the overnight hours when trains are shut down for COVID-19 cleanings.
The union representing Metropolitan Transportation Authority workers who operate the city’s public buses and subways are assaulted, harassed, spit upon, and in severe cases nearly killed by assailants in largely empty stations.
In November, the New York Police Department said that it would add around 200 cops on its patrols of subway stations after a series of disturbing incidents.
