Police found a home health aide and her 66-year-old patient dead after a wellness check at a Manhattan senior housing complex.
NEW YORK CITY, NY — A 55-year-old home health aide and the 66-year-old man she cared for were found fatally shot inside an East Harlem apartment Thursday night, prompting a double-homicide investigation that remained unsolved early Saturday.
Police responded to the Gaylord White Houses near East 104th Street and Second Avenue at about 8:30 p.m. Thursday. Officers entered an apartment and found Elsa Espina-Espinal, 55, of the Bronx, and Wilgen Elias Severino-Tatis, 66, who lived in the building. Emergency medical workers pronounced both dead at the scene. Police had not announced an arrest or publicly identified a suspect.
Investigators believe the deaths were homicides after finding no firearm inside the apartment. Both victims had suffered gunshot wounds to the head, according to police and published reports. Authorities had not released a possible motive or said what may have happened before the two were killed.
Espina-Espinal worked as Severino-Tatis’ home health aide. ABC7 reported that police went to the apartment for a wellness check after Espina-Espinal’s son became concerned when she did not arrive for her next job. Officers found the apartment unlocked when they arrived. Severino-Tatis, who had cancer, was found restrained, according to the report.
Espina-Espinal’s family said she had been preparing to retire in December. Her daughter, Elly Santana, described her mother as someone devoted to helping others. “All she ever did was help and be a good person,” Santana told ABC7 as the family struggled to understand why she had been killed.
Residents of the senior housing complex also expressed shock as detectives continued working at the building Friday. Some questioned how an armed person could have entered the property despite overnight security. Building management said officials were working to support residents and review safety at the complex.
NBC New York reported that the building superintendent raised concerns that construction around the property may have made parts of the building easier to access. Police have not publicly said how a suspected attacker entered the apartment or whether investigators believe either victim was specifically targeted.
The investigation remains active. Police had released no description of a suspect and no known motive as of early Saturday. Detectives were continuing to determine what happened inside the apartment and who was responsible for the killings.
Author note: Last updated November 7, 2026.