NYC man fatally stabs mother with machete, attempts to flee by running into the ocean

A New York City man has been charged with murder after fatally attacking his mother with a machete before attempting to flee by running into the ocean.

26-year-old Amel Crawford was arraigned on Wednesday on a second-degree murder charge in connection with the death of his 61-year-old mother, Joanna Crawford, who was found dead one day prior in their home in Queens. According to Queens Assistant District Attorney Lindsey Ruzza, Joanna had suffered 11 stab wounds. 

“A stab wound to the abdomen went through the liver and through the entire body. A knife was shoved down her throat which split her tongue in half and perforated the trachea,” Ruzza said.

Crawford was arrested on Tuesday after police discovered the attack, prior to which he proceeded to try to run onto the beach and into the Atlantic Ocean, according to a report by The New York Post. Ruzzo said that he was taken into custody at  Beach 62nd Street and Rockaway Boardwalk, where he had “run into the water presumably to evade capture.” One police source told the outlet that it looked like Crawford was attempting to commit suicide.

Crawford has been charged with second-degree murder and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He is being held without bail.

The mother-son duo reportedly had a rocky relationship, with police having previously responded to domestic disturbance complaints. Crawford does not have a criminal record, but he did have a strained relationship with his mother due to her past job working as a city corrections officer.

“He never was a troubled kid outside; he just had problems with her,” Crawford’s cousin told The Post. “I think his biggest problem with her is that she worked for corrections, she was a retired corrections officer, so she was never home.”