NYC education employee arrested for murder of jogger Katie Suarez

A New York City Department of Education employee was arrested on Saturday and charged with second-degree murder, tampering with physical evidence and criminal possession of a weapon in the fatal stabbing of 28-year-old Katie Suarez. Suarez was attacked while jogging on the Shore Parkway greenway in Brooklyn on the evening of Oct. 30; she was found injured by her father, transported to a hospital with a neck wound and later died.

Police identified 27-year-old Sayed Mohassib of Brooklyn as the suspect. Mohassib, who had previously worked at Public School 200 and served in NYPD field training in the Bronx in 2022, was taken into custody at the 62nd Precinct. He did not respond to police questions.

The Department of Education said it had suspended Mohassib and would seek termination pending the outcome of the case, adding that student safety is its top priority. City Councilmember Kayla Santosuosso, State Senator Andrew Gounardes and Assemblymember-elect Chris McCreight issued a joint statement calling Mohassib “a mentally disturbed man with no criminal record” and noting his prior service as an NYPD officer and Marine discharged on psychiatric grounds. They said his employment as a teacher’s aide raised “serious questions” about hiring practices.

Residents expressed relief at the arrest, with one pedestrian saying, "I think it's a little bit of relief. I guess relief and hopefully, potentially, some closure for her family."