KIPS BAY, Manhattan (PIX11) – A person of interest in a Manhattan woman's death was taken into custody Monday after NYPD officers pulled him from a crowd of angry neighbors.
Yazmeen Williams' body was found wrapped inside a sleeping bag amid garbage about a block away from the Straus Houses on East 27th Street in Kips Bay on Friday night, according to authorities. The 31-year-old woman was shot to death, per police.
Surveillance video showed a man in a wheelchair using a dolly to haul Williams' remains, according to authorities.
Several dozen people were seen storming the wheelchair-bound man before he was taken into custody on Monday at the Straus Houses. Neighbors first spotted the man leave his home, called police and then restrained him until officers arrived, sources told PIX11 News.
The group heckled and grabbed at the man as EMT crews carried him away on a stretcher, video of the incident showed.
Williams' mother told PIX11 News that the community unleashed its hurt and anger onto the man.
“He took a young beautiful girl, snuffed her out, took her life away from her. Threw my daughter in a garbage bag. The whole community was upset because she didn’t deserve that. He’s scum,” said Nicole Williams.
Police also found a gun after taking the man into custody. The NYPD has yet to reveal the man's identity or connection to Williams.
Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here.
