Police have charged a man for killing a 43-year-old woman and severely injuring her young children with a hammer in Brooklyn on Wednesday night.
Authorities cuffed 47-year-old Liyong Ye for the gruesome attack, and charged him with murder, along with two counts of attempted murder, assault and criminal possession of a weapon.
According to investigators, Ye and his 9-year-old son lived in the same apartment as his three alleged victims, though they were not related.
The incident broke out shortly before 3 p.m. inside the 52nd Street residence in Sunset Park, when he allegedly mercilessly beat Zhao Zhao with a hammer, before bludgeoning her 5-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter.
Paramedics arrived on the scene and rushed the three victims to NYU Langone Hospital, where the mother was pronounced dead. The children were left “fighting for their lives,” according to NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell.
Cops found Ye covered in blood as he attempted to flee the residence, and cuffed him shortly after.
Police did not announce a motive for the brutal attack, but took Ye to Maimonides Medical Center for a mental health evaluation after his arrest.
According to local State Sen. Iwen Chu, a third roommate living in the residence had initially called 911 after discovering the aftermath of the bloody rampage.
Chu added during a press conference Wednesday that Zhao’s husband had been working in another state while working to support the family, who had immigrated to the United States from China’s Fujian Province.
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