Former NYPD officer arrested and charged with second-degree murder in killing of Brooklyn jogger Katie Suarez

New York police announced on Saturday, November 7, the arrest of Sayed Mohassib, 27, of Brooklyn, charging him with second-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of 28-year-old jogger Katie Suarez. Suarez was stabbed in the neck while running on the Shore Parkway Greenway in Brooklyn on the evening of October 30 and died in hospital days later. Police said the investigation is continuing, the attack is believed to have been random, and no motive has been established. (Photo: the Shore Parkway area of Brooklyn, file photo. Photo: Run Every Street.)

Attacked on an evening run on October 30; died days later

The attack happened at about 8:15 p.m. on Friday, October 30, on the Shore Parkway Greenway, a waterfront path beside the Belt Parkway in the Bath Beach section of Brooklyn. Suarez had gone for a run after work; after being stabbed in the neck she managed to run about 150 feet before collapsing, and was taken to NYU Langone Hospital–Brooklyn, where she died days later. The medical examiner's office classified her death as a homicide on Friday, November 6. Suarez worked at TD Bank; at about 7:56 p.m. she spoke to her father by phone, saying she was about half a mile away and would meet him shortly. She had been training for a race on November 14.

Suspect briefly served as a police officer and school aide; now suspended

Police said Mohassib served briefly with the New York Police Department in 2022, for about six weeks, and was later discharged from the Marine Corps over psychological and mental health issues; at the time of his arrest he was working as a substitute paraprofessional at an elementary school in Brooklyn. The New York City Department of Education has suspended him and said it will move to terminate his employment. Investigators identified him through surveillance footage from near the scene; the only known connection between the two is that both attended Brooklyn College, according to reports. Police arrested him on November 7 at his home in Bensonhurst.

Charged with second-degree murder and two other counts; motive still under investigation

Mohassib is charged with second-degree murder, tampering with physical evidence and criminal possession of a weapon, and will be arraigned in Kings County Criminal Court, with the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office prosecuting the case. The New York Post, citing police sources, reported that Mohassib told detectives he woke up covered in blood and holding a knife, with no memory of the attack; investigators say he discarded the knife, which was later traced to a landfill. Police believe the attack was random and have not determined a motive. The charges are allegations, and Mohassib is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

(Sources: New York Police Department; Associated Press; New York Post; ABC7; CBS News, November 7–8, 2026.)

November 8 update: elected officials demand inquiry into hiring; suspect returned to school after attack

Multiple outlets reported that Mohassib was taken in for questioning on Friday, November 6, and arrested the next day at his home in Bensonhurst. City Councilmember Kayla Santosuosso, State Senator Andrew Gounardes and Assemblymember-elect Chris McCreight issued a joint statement calling for a full investigation into how Mohassib was hired and kept on, describing him as "evidently a mentally disturbed man" who had been discharged from the Marine Corps on psychiatric grounds yet was still working as a teacher's aide in a public school at the time of the attack. Police sources said Mohassib returned to work at P.S. 200 in the days after the alleged murder, until his arrest. No arraignment result had been reported as of the early hours of November 8.

November 8 update: suspect told police he "blacked out"; both attended Brooklyn College

Citing police sources, CBS News reported that Mohassib told detectives he had "blacked out" and did not remember hurting anyone. Police said he and Suarez both attended Brooklyn College at the same time, but there is currently no evidence that they knew each other. Mohassib was in NYPD field training in the Bronx from October to November 2022, and was working as a teacher's aide at P.S. 200 in Brooklyn at the time of the attack; the Department of Education has suspended him and will move to terminate his employment. As of this round, no confirmed reporting on the arraignment outcome has appeared; the investigation continues and the motive is still unknown.

Update, November 8: Suspect pleads not guilty; held without bail

The New York Times reported that Sayed Mohassib, 27, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on Sunday morning to second-degree murder and related charges, and was ordered held without bail. Police have not announced a motive, and investigators believe the attack may have been random. LiveOnNY confirmed that victim Katie Suarez had registered as an organ donor and that her organs were transplanted to several patients.

Update, November 9: Complaint says suspect carried a knife; next hearing today

According to WABC and other reports, the criminal complaint says Mohassib told investigators he carried a knife when he went to the Shore Parkway Greenway; surveillance showed him walking toward the path beforehand and running away afterwards; prosecutors said the victim's blood was splattered on the walls of his Bensonhurst apartment and that he had tried to clean it. Judge John McPadden ordered him held without a psychiatric evaluation; his next court appearance is November 10 (Tuesday). He had previously been found unfit for service in the US Marine Corps for psychological reasons. No motive has been established, and the attack is believed to have been random.