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Who is Peter Zisopoulos? Hero EMT Alison Russo-Elling was murdered by man, 34, with schizophrenia history

Peter Zisopoulos stabbed Alison Russo-Elling almost 19 times due to which she suffered a deep lethal wound to the chest and was left unresponsive

Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers' discretion advised

QUEENS, NEW YORK CITY: A 24-year veteran of the New York Fire Department was killed by a man with a history of schizophrenia. Peter Zisopoulos brutally murdered Alison Russo-Elling on Thursday, September 29, in broad daylight on a street in Astoria, Queens. Zisopoulos has now been charged with murder and possession of a weapon for the attack. He used a steak knife to viciously stab her. 

Zisopoulos, 34, killed Russo-Elling, 61, an Emergency Medical Service (EMS) lieutenant who was at Ground Zero after 9/11 as a first responder while she was helping a patient a block away from her station house. She was reportedly stabbed multiple times, approximately 19, in the chest in the apparently random attack. The attack is said to be completely random and unprovoked as Russo-Elling was on her way to get food when Zisopoulos approached her and killed her. As per ABC13, the NYPD has recovered several surveillance videos that have captured the attack. In the video, Russo-Elling passes by Zisopoulos who is standing in the doorway of a building and the 34-year-old suddenly pulls out a steak knife and runs full speed, knocks her down, and stabs her. Russo-Elling also suffered a deep lethal wound to the chest as she was left unresponsive. 

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New York Post reported that Zisopoulos was charged with her murder on Friday, September 30, and taken off to the Queens court after apparently admitting to the crime. New York Attorney General Letitia James said, "This senseless, brutal attack against a dedicated public servant is horrific, infuriating, and devastating. This attack reminds us all of the dangers faced by New York EMS personnel and why these dedicated heroes who have earned our respect deserve pay equity and fair compensation." 

Who is Peter Zisopoulos?

This is Zisopoulos's first arrest, and the only altercation he had with the law was back in 2018 when he made anti-Asian threats over Facebook. He was not arrested. However, the 34-year-old was diagnosed with schizophrenia after he was taken to the Elmhurst Hospital for being emotionally disturbed. The police arrested Zisopoulos in a three-story apartment building on 20th Avenue and 41st Street in Queens. He resisted arrest for almost an hour but eventually surrendered. New York Daily News reports that he was to his apartment chased by an eyewitness Janki Oomraw, 42, who said, "He has a bloody knife in his hand. There was blood all over his hands." A Fox5 NY reporter shared the video fo Zisopoulos being taken away.

Vincent Variale, the president of the Uniformed EMS Officers Union, told the New York Post, "He’s not insane. He stabbed a hero, and he knew that he did wrong because he ran away after he did it. That tells me he understood what he did was wrong." The footage also shows the moment when a witness tried to stop him and chased him away. Daily Mail reports that Zisopoulos screamed "F**k you, f**k you!!" before he charged at the witness who then rode his scooter to safety. An FDNY source explained, "At this point in the investigation there doesn’t appear to have been any prior contact between them. He just walked toward her, sped up and then stabbed her to death."