When Luis Emmanuel Valencia Ponce showed up at JFK airport in New York City on March 16, 2026, demanding to board a flight to Peru, authorities knew something wasn’t right. The 18-year-old didn’t have a boarding pass or passport, and there wasn’t a flight scheduled to Peru. Port Authority police took him to an area hospital for a mental health evaluation, but doctors released him later that day. On March 17, the New York Police Department shared clear surveillance video from the day before of a random attack at 23rd Avenue and 94th Street. Valencia Ponce’s father reportedly saw the video and recognized his son as the attacker. He convinced him to turn himself in and now, Valencia Ponce faces charges in the brutal attack.
Valencia Ponce reportedly didn‘t say a word during the attack.
The New York Post reported Valencia Ponce stabbed 29-year-old Lisette Ramales as she crossed the street in East Elmhurst just after 6 a.m. Ramales said Valencia Ponce appeared out of nowhere while she was waiting to cross the street.
“I was waiting, all of a sudden, the guy slashed me,” she told the New York Post. Ramales said she yelled, and Valencia Ponce stabbed her again.
“That’s the weird part. He didn’t say anything,” Ramales recalled. “He didn’t take anything, my belongings — nothing.”
Surveillance video from a nearby business helped lead to Valencia Ponce’s arrest.
ABC New York reported surveillance cameras close to the scene of the attack got clear images that appear to be Valencia Ponce. NYPD blasted the images on social media and the 18-year-old’s father reportedly told him to turn himself in after seeing them. He has now been charged with attempted murder and two counts of assault.
The attack left Ramales apprehensive.
The mom who has children ages 14, 11, and 3, told the New York Post the attack left her fearful of walking alone.
“Honestly, I’m scared to go back home,” she admitted. “If I do work, I’m probably just going to go a little later in the day when there’s sunlight.”
Valencia Ponce reportedly lived close by with his father in a basement apartment. Berelyne Chalas, who lives in the same building as Valencia Ponce and his dad, called the situation “creepy.”
“He’s very quiet. You know, like an emo kid. He’s always wearing a hoodie. He just minds his own business, very quiet, very reserved,” Chalas said.
Valencia Ponce and Ramales did not know each other before the attack, ABC News New York reported. We wonder what went through the attacker’s head in the moments leading up to the slashing. If this were a truly random attack, Ramales and her children got so lucky that it wasn’t worse. She’ll likely rethink walking alone in the early morning from now on. We certainly would.
