Jun 24, 2008 11:53 pm US/Eastern
Ex-Con Arrested In Queens 'Bike-By' Stabbing
Suspect Was Charged In 3 Bike-Riding Stabbings In 1994
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
-
-
Elie Granger, seen here when he was arrested in 1994 for stabbing three people, was a suspect in a similar case that happened on Sunday, June 22, 2008.
CBS
A substitute teacher has been arrested for stabbing a mom right in front of her daughter. It was an attack that some think could have been prevented.
Detectives say Elie Granger, who was once a certified substitute teacher under private psychiatric care, is where he belongs -- in jail.
He served prison time for stabbing three men back in 1994, but Tuesday said he had nothing to do with the woman stabbed on Sunday.
Flanked by detectives and handcuffed with a smirk plastered across his face, Granger, 46, told reporters outside the 114 Precinct in the Astoria section of Queens, police have arrested the wrong man.
"I hope you will find some, do some real investigating and find out who did this," Granger said.
On Sunday morning, police say the cyclist stabbed Eduarda Oliva in the chest as she walked with her 13-year-old daughter in Long Island City. Granger then hopped on his bike and took off.
Granger spent a decade in prison for stabbing three men in the same "bike ride-by" fashion in Manhattan in 1994.
On Tuesday, neighbors of the Greenpoint, Brooklyn Hotel where he lived are relieved to hear of his arrest but say Granger should never have been released.
"People that come out of jail, they have nothing better to do," neighbor Ruben Santos said. "So in order for them to be where they want to be really they do something again just to go back, 'cause they can't deal with society."
Granger's troubles began in 1993 when he pleaded guilty to riding his bike down a Manhattan sidewalk and punching former New York City Councilman Andrew Eristoff.
Eristoff, who was sponsoring a bill allowing police to seize bikes ridden on city sidewalks, had asked Granger to ride on the street. Granger implied his arrest Tuesday was a police publicity ploy.
"They went through a lot trouble in preparation to get their faces on the camera, get their faces on the camera," Granger said. "This is high profile, just the way you want it."
Granger has been charged with second degree attempted murder and first and second degree assault.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Comments