The former Polo Grounds in upper Manhattan saw two violent incidents on Sunday in which two homeless men stabbed each other, and a third man was shot dead hours later, police reported.
According to police sources, the first bloody episode occurred at the corner of 155th Street and Edgecombe Avenue, across the street from the Polo Grounds Towers, at around 3:38 p.m. on March 3, when two homeless men apparently got into a verbal dispute.
Law enforcement sources said the combatants, a 45-year-man and 58-year-old man, savagely sliced and stabbed each another during the ensuing knife fight.
Cops reported that the older man took the worst of it, suffering multiple stab wounds to the head and body. EMS rushed him to Harlem Hospital in critical condition; however, after several hours of care, he was upgraded to stable condition.
The 45-year-old man, meanwhile, also received treatment at Harlem Hospital for slash wounds to his face.
Both men, not identified, have been charged with assault with intent to cause physical injury with a weapon, assault, criminal possession of a weapon, and menacing, police reported.
Hours later, police responded to a reported shooting inside the Polo Grounds NYCHA Complex at 2971 8th Ave. at about 10:37 p.m. on Sunday night.
Upon arriving at the scene, officers from the 32nd Precinct found 33-year-old Kenneth Taveras, who lived at the location, with multiple gunshot wounds to his chest.
EMS rushed Taveras to Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
Detectives say they are looking for three to five suspects who were seen fleeing the area in a black pickup truck following the gunfire.
No arrests have been made and the investigation remains ongoing, police said.
Anyone with information regarding the shooting can call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA). You can also submit tips online at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, or on Twitter @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
There used to be a ballpark at the Polo Grounds, which had been the first home of the Yankees as well as that of the New York baseball Giants, before they relocated to San Francisco. The Mets played their first two seasons at the Polo Grounds in 1962 and 1963; after they relocated to Queens and Shea Stadium in 1964, the Polo Grounds were demolished to make way for the NYCHA complex.
