Police search for criminals who killed 74-year-old New York woman, leaving her bound, gagged and gagged in her apartment

Police in New York are searching for the person or people behind a horrific crime that left a 74-year-old woman dead in her home this week under puzzling circumstances.

The victim, identified by police as Maria Hernandez, was found Wednesday by her sister Maria Terrero in her upper west apartment. According to the NY Post, Terrero became concerned when Hernandez’s daughter reported that she hadn’t heard from Hernandez in a while and went to check on her. When he got there, he found the unimaginable: his sister was tied to a chair and gagged, apparently unconscious. Terrero called 911, but Hernandez was pronounced dead at the scene.

For now, NYPD detectives seem to have more questions than answers. Police describe the apartment as “ransacked,” but have not been able to identify any items that were taken from the apartment. And while they offered robbery as a possible motive for the crime, they found no signs of forced entry into the apartment, nor were there any other signs of trauma to Hernandez.

As of Friday, the medical examiner indicated that asphyxiation was the cause of Hernández’s death. According to WCBS, neighbors were also baffled as to who might have targeted Hernandez. “Absolutely the last person I would expect something like this to happen to,” said neighbor Patrick Jolicoeur. “I’m shocked. All last night my wife and I were shaking our heads, freaking out. I couldn’t believe it. I’ve lived here over 30 years, so it happened to her, it could happen to any of us.”

NYPD investigators were seen going in and out of Hernandez’s apartment Friday in an apparent search for clues.

The NY Post reported that police have indicated that someone used a hammer and crowbar to break into the building’s basement to steal the building’s CCTV system, and investigators are working on the assumption that whoever did it do may be related to the murder of Hernández.

The building superintendent told the Post, “I have a lot of elderly women in this building. I try to take care of them. Watch out for them,” he said. “I know people target the elderly. I try to teach the younger ones. guys in the building to always take care of the elderly here.”

Anyone with information about the crime is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).

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