Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. today announced the indictment of JAHEEM WARREN, 33, for stalking and suffocating a 23-year-old woman to death in Midtown in October 2024. WARREN is charged in a New York State Supreme Court indictment with one count of Murder in the Second Degree. [1] 

“Jaheem Warren allegedly stalked a young woman for 25 minutes on the streets of Manhattan before he brutally attacked her, throwing her onto a pile of garbage bags and suffocating her,” said District Attorney Bragg. “This alleged conduct is abhorrent. People deserve to be safe when walking through Manhattan, and my Office will ensure accountability for those who commit horrific acts of violence.”

According to court documents and statements made on the record, on October 29, 2024, at approximately 4:19 a.m., a 23-year-old woman left her building on West 45th Street. Within a minute, WARREN approached her at the corner of Eighth Avenue, engaging in conversation. WARREN then began following her for approximately 25 minutes as she walked around Midtown. 

At approximately 4:45 a.m., outside of a hotel on West 46th Street, WARREN grabbed the woman from behind, threw her onto a pile of plastic garbage bags on the sidewalk, climbed on top of her and held her face down on the plastic bags, smothering her. WARREN left the woman face down. 

At approximately 5:08 a.m., a passerby found her unconscious and called 911. 

The woman was transported to Mount Sinai West where she was found to have no brain activity. After a week on a ventilator in the ICU, she was pronounced dead on November 4, 2024.

WARREN was apprehended in New Jersey on November 1, 2024. 

Assistant D.A.s Maria Luna (Child Abuse Bureau) and Candace White (Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Bureau) are handling the prosecution of this case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Heather Buchanan (Bureau Chief of the Child Abuse Bureau) and Nicole Blumberg (Bureau Chief of the Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Bureau), and Executive Assistant D.A. Justin McNabney (Chief of the Special Victims Division). Senior Investigative Analyst Molly Viar and Trial Preparation Assistant Grace Lillis are providing valuable assistance in this case. 

D.A. Bragg thanked the NYPD, particularly Detectives Brian Fornasar and Jose Criollo of the Midtown North Precinct Detective Squad and Detective Oscar Diaz of the Manhattan South Homicide Squad. 

 

Defendant Information: 

JAHEEM WARREN 

Charged:

• Murder in the Second Degree, a class A-I felony, one count 

### 

 

[1] The charges contained in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. All factual recitations are derived from documents filed in court and statements made on the record in court.