College student stabbed to death in Manhattan may have been mistaken for gang member, police say

MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11) -- Police are zeroing in on those responsible for the stabbing death of an 18-year-old college student in Manhattan on Friday. PIX11 News has learned the incident could have been a case of mistaken identity.

"You took my brother, but you are going to also mess up your life ... The same thing you took away from my brother is going to happen to you," the victim's sister, who wished to remain anonymous, said in a message directed toward her brother's killers.

Denzel Bimpey was on a coach bus from Syracuse headed to New York City for the holiday break the night he was killed. Prior to the trip, Bimpey had called his sister to ask the family to make his favorite food. But he never made it home.

While on the bus, Bimpey got into an argument with students from Onondaga College. The argument started after Bimpey and his friends were asked if they were in a gang, according to police.

"The perpetrator group starts talking some gang language, asking our victim's group 'what block are you from?' And they respond, 'We're not in a gang.' The victim's group has no prior arrest history. They just seem to be students who came across a group who may have mistaken them for other gang members," NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said.

Once they got off the bus, that's when things escalated. Surveillance cameras show Bimpey being attacked, police said. He tried to get away and ran for about a block before he collapsed near East 26th Street and Park Avenue South. Police also have video from the bus and the station in Syracuse.

Bimpey was loved by his classmates. Many left messages on a poster to honor him. Bimpey was also a joy to his family, always laughing, ambitious and driven.

"All of this could have been avoided," Bimpey's sister said. "The guns, the knives, the weapons need to be taken off the streets. It just doesn't make any sense that these kids are literally wasting their life."