Police identify US Postal Service worker stabbed to death in NYC

HARLEM, Manhattan (PIX11) – Police released the identity of a U.S. Postal Service worker who was stabbed to death at a deli in Manhattan on Thursday.

The NYPD identified the postal worker as 36-year-old Bronx resident Ray Hodges. He was a letter carrier and was on duty when he was fatally stabbed, according to the United States Postal Inspection Service. 

The incident happened at Joe’s Grocery at 168 Lenox Ave. in Harlem around 2:30 p.m., according to the NYPD.

An employee who was inside the deli at the time of the stabbing said Hodges was attempting to buy a sandwich. When Hodges went to the counter to pay for the sandwich, he and another person got into an argument over who was next in line. 

The argument turned violent and the other person stabbed Hodges multiple times, according to police. Hodges was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Investigators said a witness at the scene identified the suspect in the vicinity of where the stabbing happened.

Jaia Cruz, a 24-year-old Harlem resident, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, police said.

A spokesperson for the United States Postal Inspection Service released a statement about the incident.

“The Postal Inspection Service takes matters involving the safety and wellbeing of postal service employees as a top priority. We are working diligently with the New York City Police Department on this investigation,” the spokesperson said.