Investigators are asking anyone who may have seen 55-year-old Elsa Espina-Espinal and 66-year-old Wilgen Elias Severino-Tatis before they were discovered dead on Nov. 5 to come forward as they continue to search for the killer.
Police sources said the pair were found fatally shot in the head inside Severino-Tatis’ apartment at 2029 2nd Ave. at some time before 8:34 p.m. on Nov. 5.
Espina-Espinal worked as a home health aide and had provided regular care to Severino-Tatis at his home. When she failed to report to her evening shift that night, sources familiar with the case said, her employer called her son to ask why she had not arrived to work.
But her son also did not know where she was, the sources said — prompting him to contact Severino-Tatis’s neighbor at 2029 2nd Ave., since he knew the neighbor had also been providing him care. Espina-Espinal had other residents of the 2nd Avenue location in her care, sources added.
The neighbor entered the home after finding the door unlocked and came upon the grisly scene.
Officers from the 23rd Precinct rushed to the apartment and found Severino-Tatis lying lifeless on a bed in the living room. He had been shot in the forehad, and his hands were bound with an extension cord.
Espina-Espinal, sources said, was found nearby, also with a fatal gunshot wound to her head. An extension cord had been wrapped around her left wrist, but her hands were not fully bound, the sources noted.
Another source told amNewYork that detectives were probing the possibility that one or several suspects had intended to rob Severino-Tatis, but the worker may have interrupted the crime — leading to her execution.
No arrests have been made, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information regarding this double homicide can call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA). You can also submit tips online at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, or on X (formerly Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
