New photos of a suspect in the murder of a popular New York vocal coach have been released by police amid a request for more information.
Barbara Gastern, 87, was attacked while walking home down West 28th Street and Eighth Avenue in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood at 8:30 p.m. March 10, the New York City Police Department said.
Ms Gustern fell and hit her head during the attack, resulting in fatal injuries. She later died in the hospital.
The suspected woman fled the scene towards 9th Avenue. The new images appear to have come from a surveillance camera in a New York City subway station.
Students in the Manhattan resident who rehearsed in her apartment told The New York Times that a cyclist who witnessed the attack escorted Ms Gastern back to her apartment covered in blood. Then the emergency services responded.
Police are still looking for a suspect who, according to NBC News, didn’t exchange a word with Ms. Gastern before attacking the vocal coach from behind. The motive is not known.
Among those who paid tribute to Ms. Gastern were the cast and co-stars of the 2019 Broadway revival of the musical Oklahoma! Ms. Gastern has also worked with Blondie lead singer Debbie Harry.
“Barbara Mayer Gustern was 87 years old. Voice trainer. Good Neighbor,” ABC7 New York’s Lucy Young wrote on Facebook on Friday. “She always opened her table during the holidays for those who have no family. Absolute New York. She went everywhere. In fact, she was going to her student’s concert when the sweet grandmother was knocked to the ground. The fall proved fatal.
Singer-songwriter Justin Vivian Bond, who visited Ms Gastern’s grandson on Friday, wrote on Facebook that “we all loved her and I’m sure each of us felt like her favorite.” She also recalled Ms. Gastern’s 85th birthday party, which was “unforgettable” and “that night it felt like half the town was taking turns singing.”
Ms Vivian also visited a small memorial to the vocal coach near Ms Gastern’s home in Chelsea, which was decorated with flowers and messages.
NYPD Chief of Detective James Essig said the attack on Ms. Gastern was “a heinous, shameful crime committed against a vulnerable elderly woman who did nothing but walk the streets of New York” and appealed again for information.
Police described the suspect as “a woman with fair skin and long dark hair.”
It also states that the man was “last seen wearing a black jacket, black leggings, a white skirt (possibly a dress), and dark shoes.”