Deli worker speaks out after USPS employee stabbed to death
By Kristie Keleshian
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NEW YORK (WCBS) — A New York City deli worker who witnessed the fatal stabbing of a U.S. Postal Service employee says it happened after the suspect appeared to cut in line.
Ray Hodge, a 36-year-old USPS employee from the Bronx, died after 24-year-old Jaya Cruz stabbed him during an argument at the deli in Harlem, according to police.
Hodge and Cruz were regulars at the establishment on Lenox Avenue between 118th Street and 119th, and did not have a history of getting into altercations, the worker told CBS News New York on Friday.
An argument over who was first in line boiled over into the deadly altercation near the deli’s coffee machine Thursday afternoon, the worker said.
“I separate them. The mail guy in the front, the lady she was in back. She spit on him, in his face. And mail guy, he got mad. Lemon juice next to the coffee machine, he threw on her. So she took the knife,” the deli worker said. “This is so bad. This is my first time seeing this happen in front of my face.”
Hodge appeared to be in line first, the deli worker said.
Cruz was arrested and charged with second degree murder.
In a statement to CBS News New York, the USPS said it “takes matters involving the safety and wellbeing of postal service employees as a top priority. We are working diligently with the New York City Police Department on this investigation. To protect the integrity of this investigation, we cannot provide further details at this time. If your viewers have information, please contact postal inspectors at 212-330-2400.”
A teacher at a school near the deli said the commotion forced a lockdown, which is routine when there’s any sort of danger in the area.
On the heels on Hodge’s murder, a female USPS worker was attacked in Harlem on Friday, police said.
A stranger struck the woman, 32, in the stomach with an unknown object at around 7:30 a.m. on Lexington Avenue near East 99th Street, according to NYPD.
The postal worker was hospitalized. Her injuries were believed to be non-life-threatening.
It was not immediately known why she was targeted, police said.
The suspect was described as a female in her 50s wearing a black coat.
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