Nassau County police have opened a homicide investigation after a young man was stabbed to death outside a building on Fulton Avenue in Hempstead, on Long Island, according to News 12. The killing happened on Sunday night and left tenants of the building and neighbors who live on the block shaken, as detectives worked the scene late into the night.
According to the report from the scene, the attack unfolded at about 9:30 p.m. outside 545 Fulton Avenue, right at the corner of California Avenue in Hempstead. Video from the scene showed detectives taping off the roads and combing the ground for evidence as the investigation got underway.
Nassau County police said they have so far identified the victim only as an 18-year-old Hispanic male, and they have not released his name. Officers said he was found with puncture wounds to his torso and that he later died of his injuries at the hospital.
Police said multiple people called 911 when the attack happened. Officers responded to the area and remained there as they secured the scene, spoke with people nearby and gathered evidence in an effort to piece together what had taken place.
Investigators were asked who they were looking for, how many people might have been involved and what could have led to the attack. According to the report, officials said they were not able to release that information at this time, leaving key questions about a possible suspect and a motive unanswered for now.
Neighbors described their shock at the violence on their block. One person who was nearby recounted seeing the man on the ground after the attack, and residents of the building and people who live along Fulton Avenue said they were very upset that someone had been killed just outside their homes.
The area around 545 Fulton Avenue remained an active scene as Nassau County detectives continued their work. News 12 reported live from Hempstead, where the death of the 18-year-old was being investigated as a homicide and police continued to appeal for an understanding of what had happened.