New Mom Murdered in Times Square on Her First Day Back From Maternity Leave

A woman who tragically lost her life recently was a new mother back from her maternity leave.

According to The New York Times, on the afternoon of Monday, August 31, Erin Piacenti was in New York City’s Times Square heading home to New Jersey from her job as a vice president at Bank of America when she stopped in front of a street vendor, and a woman named Pamela Cisneros stabbed her in the abdomen. Piacenti, 32, was taken to Bellevue Hospital and pronounced dead there.

Piacenti — who worked in the business selection and conflicts division — had just started her first week back at the bank, the outlet reported, noting she made a social media post a few days earlier sharing a photo with her newborn daughter and husband. In her post, Piacenti wrote about how grateful she was to have spent the past five months on maternity leave with her daughter, who had recently been baptized, per the publication.

Per ABC7, Bank of America released a statement about Piacenti’s death: “We are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague. She was a valued teammate who will be greatly missed. Our hearts go out to her family and all of her loved ones.”

Piacenti attended the University of Pennsylvania and graduated from Fordham Law School with her husband in 2021.

Cisneros, 49, also stabbed Tak Kam, a man from Long Island visiting the Big Apple with his son on Monday. Kam, 68, is expected to recover from his injuries.

Cisneros, who allegedly had a history of mental health issues, was fatally shot by police after threatening them with knives, according to The New York Times.