A young mother pushing a baby stroller in Manhattan’s Upper East Side was shot dead while on Wednesday night, June 29.

The 3-month-old baby was unharmed in the horrific attack that occurred around 8:20 p.m. on 95th Street and Lexington Avenue, police said.

The mother, Azsia Johnson, was shot once in the head at "very close range" by an unidentified man, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and black sweatpants, who approached her from behind, according to preliminary investigation.

The victim, who was reportedly temporarily living at a nearby women’s shelter, was taken to Metropolitan Hospital Center, where doctor’s pronounced her dead, police said.

The shooter, who police beleive was known to the victim, escaped on foot.

A motive behind the slaying remains unclear, but authorities are calling it a domestic incident, adding they've identified a person of interest they want to speak with.

"He put her light out, that’s what he did. He put her light out," Johnson’s mother, Lisa DeSort, said of the shooter.

DeSort, says her daughter had told her about being physically abused by her ex-boyfriend during her pregnancy.

"The city failed my daughter because on January 1, my daughter called me and said she was being abused while she was six months pregnant," Desort said.

"She called me crying, saying, ‘Mommy, he’s hitting me.’ And she was hysterical," Desort told New York Times.

"She was scared to call the police so she gave me the address. I called police," Desort said, NBC 4 New York reported.

The incident was reported to the police, but the man continued to threaten Johnson and her family, according to reports.

"He said, 'I’m going to kill you and all of the birds that go along with you,'" DeSort recalled.

"She was on maternity leave with this baby," DeSort said. "He kept harassing her, and threatening my life and my younger daughter’s life."

Desort said Johnson had been living in a domestic violence shelter.

"I tried to protect my daughter in every way. She had to leave my house, she couldn't live there because he knew where I lived," Desort said. "I kept telling her, 'He's no good.'"

No arrest has been reported at the time of this writing. A further probe is underway.

"We’re going to find this person that’s guilty of this horrific crime," Mayor Eric Adams told reporters. "We’re going to find him and bring him to justice. But we need the justice system to make sure this innocent person receives that justice that we’re asking for."

mother
Representational image. (Hallmackenreuther/Pixabay)

© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.