Knife-wielding ex-con gets tables turned on him lethally — courtesy of victim he robbed, fought, bit, and stabbed: Report



A knife-wielding ex-con got a deadly taste of his own medicine late last week courtesy of the victim he robbed, fought, bit, and stabbed in Brooklyn, the New York Daily News reported.

Dan Costume, 34 — who was released from prison in 2024 — entered a stranger's apartment in Flatbush through an unlocked door late Friday night, law enforcement sources and the victim told the paper.

'He was acting in self-defense.'

The 45-year-old tenant spoke to the Daily News in Spanish, telling the paper that he had just come home from playing soccer. But the tenant's wife had departed their apartment on Avenue D near East 31st Street to run an errand — and left the door unlocked, the Daily News said.

When the tenant emerged from the bathroom, he caught Costume stealing two cell phones, a laptop, and other belongings, the tenant told the paper.

“He was in shock that there was a random person in his house,” a relative of the tenant told the Daily News in English as she listened to the tenant's account in Spanish.

The tenant wrapped his arms around the intruder from behind to try to get him to drop the stolen goods, the relative told the paper.

“They started battling between each other,” the relative added to the Daily News.

Costume bit the tenant’s hands and cheek, then pulled out a knife from his pocket and stabbed the tenant in the back of the neck, the tenant told the paper.

Then the victim reportedly turned the tables on the robber.

Sources told the Daily News that the tenant was able to disarm Costume and use the robber's own knife to stab Costume in his thigh and lower back.

The tenant then shoved Costume out of the apartment and into the hallway, the paper said, adding that the burglar fled down a stairwell and out of the building, dripping blood as he dropped the stolen property.

Costume collapsed outside the building, the Daily News said, and medics rushed him to Kings County Hospital where he died.

The tenant was treated at the same hospital and released, the paper added.

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Kyle Mazza/Anadolu/Getty Images

A bruise and teeth marks were still visible on the tenant’s cheek days later, the Daily News reported, adding that the victim needed medical staples to close two gashes in his neck and on the back of his head.

“He was acting in self-defense,” the tenant's relative told the paper. “Everything happened so fast.”

The Daily News, citing sources, said prosecutors decided not to charge the tenant after reviewing the case because he acted in self-defense.

Costume’s father and sister told the paper they haven’t seen much of him since he left home at age 18, noting that he was in and out of the criminal justice system.

Costume's family members added to the Daily News that police had come looking for him several times before they knocked on their door Saturday to notify them of his death.

Costume was conditionally released from prison on parole in October 2024 after serving a one-and-a-half to three-year sentence for a Brooklyn attempted burglary conviction, the paper said, citing public records.

The tenant who killed Costume viewed surveillance video showing Costume getting into the apartment building through a back door near where garbage is kept, the Daily News reported.

The tenant also is in "a lot of pain," a relative told the paper, as he recovers from the wounds he suffered during the fight with Costume.

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'Heinous' thug accused of shoving 83-year-old military vet onto NYC subway tracks was deported 4 times, charged 15 times: DHS



The "heinous" male accused of shoving an 83-year-old military veteran off a New York City subway station platform and onto the train tracks last weekend was deported four times and has 15 prior charges on his record, the Department of Homeland Security said.

DHS on Thursday added that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has asked New York authorities not to release illegal alien suspect Bairon Posada-Hernandez, whom Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis called a "heinous" and "serial criminal" who "should never have been able to walk our streets and harm innocent Americans."

'I hope he rots in hell.'

Posada-Hernandez was arrested for attempted murder Tuesday in connection with Sunday's incident, during which he also allegedly pushed a 30-year-old man onto the subway train tracks, the agency said.

DHS said ICE on Tuesday placed a detainer on Posada-Hernandez, a Honduran national. Bis added that "DHS is calling upon New York sanctuary politicians to commit to this ICE detainer."

More from DHS:

Posada-Hernandez first entered the country on January 2, 2008, and has been deported four different times, most recently in 2020. He entered illegally a fifth time at an unknown date and location.

The suspect has a lengthy criminal history, including 15 prior charges such as simple assault, domestic violence, obstruction of police, possession of a weapon, drug possession, and aggravated assault.

One of the victims of the subway shove, a 30-year-old man, reportedly is in stable condition, while the other, an 83-year-old Air Force veteran, remains in critical condition, the agency said.

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The daughter of elderly victim Richard Williams told the New York Daily News, "He's unresponsive. He's on a respirator. No changes. He's considered critical. We're praying for a miracle. It's horrible."

As for Posada-Hernandez, Williams' daughter told the Daily News, “I hope he rots in hell."

"To push one person down and then to push another down? I thank God that young man that was pushed first — that man, I have to give him my thanks. He helped my father out of the tracks, carried him pretty much," she added to the paper. "The people there that helped, it was amazing what happened."

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Thug shoves 83-year-old man from behind onto NYC subway tracks in reportedly random attack



New York City police said an unidentified individual approached an 83-year-old man from behind on a Manhattan subway platform Sunday morning and shoved the man onto the tracks.

Police said the same individual moments prior also shoved a 30-year-old man onto the tracks.

'I get panic attacks just thinking about getting on the subway.'

The culprit fled on foot to parts unknown, police said. A WABC-TV video report characterized the attacks as random.

The station Tuesday morning said a person of interest was picked up overnight in Brooklyn, and while his identity was not yet known, charges against him are pending.

The below video report aired prior to the arrest of the person of interest:

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Both victims of the attack were taken to a hospital, the station said, adding that the 30-year-old victim was said to be stable, while the 83-year-old man was in critical condition.

John Rodriguez, the younger victim, told WABC in a previous story that he's recovering from an injured shoulder and neck as a result of falling onto the tracks after the shove.

Rodriguez, a Queens resident, told the station he was on his way to work when the completely unprovoked attack took place: "I panicked, I started asking for help, not only for me but for the other man that was pushed."

Rodriguez started recording as a good Samaritan tried to help him, WABC reported, adding that was the moment when police said the elderly victim was shoved.

NYPD officers flooded the subway and boarded trains to search for the suspect, the station said.

Rodriguez added to WABC that he's not exactly looking forward to riding the trains again: "I get panic attacks just thinking about getting on the subway."

The NYPD said nine subway shoves have occurred so far in 2026, which is up compared to three this time last year, the station said.

Police said those with information about this incident should call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public also can submit tips by logging on the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, on X @NYPDTips.

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Thug reportedly with 131 prior arrests just got charged with setting homeless man on fire while victim slept



Police said a 47-year-old male — who was on parole and had 131 prior arrests on his record — was charged for setting a homeless man on fire while the victim was sleeping in New York City's Penn Station, the New York Daily News reported.

Officers with the Amtrak Police Department arrested Damon Johnson on Tuesday and charged him with attempted murder and assault for the previous day's attack, which left a 37-year-old man with second-degree burns on his arm and back, police told the Daily News.

'Begins wailing and convulsing and scrambled to his feet with his jacket on fire.'

Johnson pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Wednesday in Manhattan Criminal Court where he was ordered held without bail, the paper said.

Amtrak police also arrested a 33-year-old female Wednesday and charged her with assault in connection with the attack, police told the Daily News.

However, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office declined to prosecute the female, the paper said, adding that police sources indicated that while she was with Johnson at the time the fire was started, it's unclear if she committed a crime at the scene.

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The Daily News, citing police, said the victim was sleeping near a West 33rd Street entrance to Penn Station’s Amtrak rotunda near Eighth Avenue when three people approached him — and one of them set fire to the man’s clothes around 8:30 p.m.

During Johnson's arraignment, Callum Mullan — a prosecutor with the DA's office — described video of the attack, which he said shows Johnson leaning over the victim, who moments later "begins wailing and convulsing and scrambled to his feet with his jacket on fire," the paper said.

After the attack, the three men fled into the station, the Daily News said.

First responders extinguished the flames and rushed the victim to New York-Presbyterian Hospital Weill Cornell’s burn unit, the paper said.

Mullan added that Johnson at the time of the attack was on parole for a 2018 robbery, in which he slashed a student’s face before taking cash from his pockets, the Daily News reported. Mullan said the victim needed more than 100 stitches, according to the paper.

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NYPD releases photos of pair wanted in viral mob attack on cops amid snowball fight



The New York City Police Department released photos of two people wanted in Monday's mob attack on cops amid a snowball fight, which reportedly caused multiple injuries to officers.

The NYPD Facebook post indicates that "two uniformed police officers were inside Washington Square Park when two individuals intentionally struck the officers multiple times with snow and ice causing injury to their head, neck, and face. Anyone with information is asked to contact @NYPDTips or 800-577-TIPS."

'That doesn’t look like a snowball fight to me, Mamdani.'

The NYPD post adds that the pair are "wanted for assault on a police officer."

Police told WABC-TV that officers responded to the park around 4 p.m. for a report of a number of people atop a roof — but officers were soon hit with snowballs, and multiple officers were taken to a hospital with facial cuts.

RELATED: 'Despicable attack': Brazen mob pelts NYPD officers with snowballs, multiple cops reportedly injured — and it's all on video

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) faced criticism Tuesday over the assault on officers, with a number of political figures noting that the mayor's history of anti-police rhetoric contributed to the mob attack.

When asked at a news conference if he supports the police department's intention to criminally prosecute suspects in the case, Mamdani replied, "I don't. From the videos that I've seen, it looks like a snowball fight."

RELATED: 'This is disgraceful': Mamdani raked over the coals for attack on NYPD

The NYPD's Facebook post concerning the two individuals wanted in the matter has received more than 17,000 comments as of Wednesday morning — and it appears after a cursory read that many of them actually mock police over the incident. One wrote, "They showed up for a snowball fight. What did they expect? I'm sure there were mass casualties."

Others, however, weren't happy with those caught on camera attacking cops:

  • "That doesn’t look like a snowball fight to me, Mamdani," one commenter noted.
  • "A snowball fight is when you have 2 opposing sides," another user stated. "NYPD was not throwing snowballs as far as I can see."
  • "The cops didn’t think it was funny. They push a couple of people who were very aggressive," another commenter wrote. "This idea that is being pushed by some that we do not have to respect or obey law enforcement is getting out of control. Those officers showed tremendous restraint."
  • "The mayor would demand the arrest of the officers if they threw snowballs back at the thugs," another user observed.

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NYPD officer sent obscene material to undercover cop posing as 14-year-old girl: DA's office



A New York City Police Department officer allegedly sent obscene material to an undercover cop posing as a 14-year-old girl, according to authorities.

Travis DeSouza — a 35-year-old NYPD officer of Briarwood — was charged with attempted dissemination of indecent material to minors in the first degree, official misconduct, obscenity in the third degree, and attempted endangerment of the welfare of a child. If convicted, DeSouza faces up to four years in prison.

'I should be telling you to stop ... but your maturity and the way you act is different.'

DeSouza — who was released without bail Thursday, according to court records — reportedly worked in the Law Enforcement Explorers program at the 75th Precinct in Brooklyn.

The program "provides young men and women from the city's diverse communities with an introduction to a career in law enforcement or a related field in the criminal justice system."

"Explorers are taught the importance of higher education, self-discipline, and respect for diversity and human dignity through training, involvement in community service projects, and other Exploring events," the program description states.

The program is said to employ "positive adult role models," including "law enforcement officers who help young adults see officers as fellow human beings."

The program is "geared" toward young people ages 14 to 20.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a Friday statement: "On October 3, 2024, at approximately 5:49 p.m., an undercover officer, posing as a 14-year-old girl, met with DeSouza, who oversaw the program. DeSouza asked for the undercover officer’s age, and she told DeSouza that she was 14. The undercover officer asked DeSouza for his phone number, and he provided it."

The undercover officer reportedly had conversations with DeSouza on the Snapchat app from Oct. 8 to Oct. 10.

The DA's office stated, "On October 10, at approximately 10:11 p.m., DeSouza allegedly told the undercover, 'You something else.' About a minute later, DeSouza sent the undercover a photo of a man wearing boxer shorts with his hand on his genitals."

Citing the criminal complaint, the New York Post reported that the undercover agent asked DeSouza on Snapchat: "What’s under those shorts?"

DeSouza reportedly replied, "Something big, maybe more than you can handle."

DeSouza allegedly set the social media messages to disappear immediately.

The Post noted that DeSouza acknowledged the age difference and allegedly told the undercover cop, "And I don’t know even why you got me thinking things I shouldn’t because of how far we are of age LOL I should be telling you to stop ... but your maturity and the way you act is different."

DeSouza allegedly sent some of the illicit messages from a New York Police Department building in Queens.

DeSouza has been suspended without pay from the NYPD, according to the department.

Katz stated, “As alleged, this defendant took advantage of his position with the NYPD to prey on someone he thought was a 14-year-old who happened to be a police officer on assignment."

Katz continued, "The Explorers is an amazing program and our kids need to trust and have faith in its leaders. Although he was told that the ‘girl’ was just 14, the defendant allegedly sent explicit content to her. Thank you to our partners in the NYPD for their assistance with this investigation."

DeSouza is scheduled to return to court on June 11.

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