A 26-year-old woman turned herself over to police nearly two weeks after she shoved an 87-year-old singing coach to the ground of a Manhattan sidewalk then watched as an ambulance took the dying woman away, according to reports.
Lauren Pazienza now faces charges of manslaughter and assault for the fatal attack of Barbara Maier Gustern, who died several days after the March 10 attack, prosecutors said Tuesday at her Manhattan Criminal Court appearance, according to the New York Daily News.
Assistant District Attorney Justin McNabney described how Pazienza "crossed the street, approached her directly, called her ‘a b**ch’ [and] shoved her as hard as she’s ever been hit," the outlet reported.
The account came from a friend who had spoken to Gustern after the attack. The elderly victim was "bleeding profusely from the head" before losing consciousness from her fatal injuries, McNabney added.
He noted that Pazienza had a "physical altercation" with her fiancé several minutes after the attack, which was caught on security video. She then reportedly stood nearby and watched police and an ambulance remove Gustern from the scene.
"Doctors tried to perform life-saving surgery but could not restore brain function," the prosecutor added.
A New York City judge set Lauren Pazienza’s bail at $500,000 or $1 million bond. She is due back in court on Friday to enter a plea. New York attorney Arthur Aidala later told reporters his client "was crying, she was in pain."
"She’s been accused of a horrible act," he continued, according to Fox News. "She’s a very moral, right, just person who went to high school, went to college, has a job, a fiancé, has a family. And for her, she’s in the twilight zone. She’s destroyed."
Pazienza had been living in an Astoria apartment but after the incident fled to hide out at her parents’ Long Island home, authorities said, according to the Daily News. She turned herself in after the NYPD came knocking on the door of her parents' home after receiving a tip, officials said.
According to reports, her father refused to let police in and insisted his daughter was not at home. Pazienza hired a lawyer before surrendering Tuesday.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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