Arizona will not agree to extradite SoHo hotel murder suspect to New York City
NEW YORK -- Arizona prosecutors will not agree to extradite Raad Almansoori to New York to face charges in the death of a woman at a SoHo hotel.
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said she will instead keep Almansoori, 26, in Arizona to face the two stabbing charges, where he is being held without the possibility of bail.
"There is no amount of money that he can post to get out of custody at this point," she said of Almansoori. "We will not be agreeing to extradition. I've instructed my extradition attorneys not to agree to that, we are going to keep him here."
Mitchell raised concerns that Almansoori could be released on bail if he is extradited to Manhattan, "having observed the treatment of violent criminals in the New York area by the Manhattan DA there, Alvin Bragg."
Almansoori is wanted in the death of Denisse Oleas-Arancibia, 38, who was found earlier this month at SoHo 54 Hotel on Watts Street sometime on either February 7 or 8. A broken iron was recovered at the scene and bits of plastic were embedded in the victim's skull, detectives said.
According to the NYPD, Almansoori made statements while in custody in Arizona linking himself to a string of assaults on women, including stabbings in Surprise and Phoenix, an attack in Florida and the deadly attack in the New York City hotel. Several of those crimes involve women who work as escorts.
Manhattan District Attorney spokesperson Emily Tuttle said it is "deeply disturbing that D.A. Mitchell is playing political games in a murder investigation."
"In Manhattan, we are serious about New Yorkers' safety, which is why murders are down 24% and shootings are down 38% since D.A. Bragg took office," her statement said. "New York's murder rate is less than half that of Phoenix, Arizona, because of the hard work of the NYPD and all of our law enforcement partners. It is a slap in the face to them and to the victim in our case to refuse to allow us to seek justice and full accountability for a New Yorker's death."
Police in Surprise, Arizona arrested Almansoori Sunday after he allegedly stabbed a woman during a carjacking. Police say they tracked him down shortly thereafter in the stolen car.
Police say he also stabbed an 18-year-old woman in the neck inside a McDonald's bathroom in Phoenix last Saturday.
Both women in the Arizona attacks survived.
Investigators believe Almansoori fled to Arizona shortly after murdering Oleas-Arancibia.
Her sister issued a statement:
"My sister was a hard working, smart, funny, positively bright woman. She was always making everyone laugh and had such a huge heart. She did not deserve to be murdered," she said.
RELATED | Man wanted in SoHo hotel death may be multi-state serial attacker, police say
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