Nassau County police arrested a 53-year-old homeless man after a Belmont Park worker was found in a barn at the racetrack with multiple stab wounds early Sunday, police said.
The man, Jose Franco-Martinez, is charged with first-degree murder and was arraigned by Nassau District Court Judge Paul Meli at the Nassau University Medical Center psychiatric ward on Monday, officials said.
He is being held without bail.
Franco-Martinez allegedly stabbed Maria Larin, 51, an Elmont resident, resulting in her death, officials said.
New York Racing Association security officers became alarmed when they noticed a loose horse on Sunday morning, police said.
Security investigated a rear barn and found the woman with multiple stab wounds at 6:32 a.m.; she was taken to a local hospital and pronounced dead, police said.
Larin was a hot walker, which means she cools the horses down and walks them after training sessions, Detective Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick, head of the Nassau County Homicide Squad, said according to CBS New York.
Franco-Martinez was arrested at the scene, according to police.
Fitzpatrick said police determined this was a targeted incident, not a random act, according to the New York Post.
CBS, Newsday and the New York Post identified the man as the victim’s ex-boyfriend, but a Nassau County police spokeswoman would not confirm or deny that information.
A spokesman for the Nassau County district attorney’s office also would not confirm the information, and said the investigation is ongoing.
Reach reporter Rebecca Klar by email at rklar@theislandnow.com, by phone at 516-307-1045, ext. 204, or follow her on Twitter @rebeccaklar_.
