A man who was dubbed the ‘Brooklyn Ripper’ for stabbing two children in the elevator of a housing project in 2014 has died in a New York prison. One of the children attacked by 37-year-old Daniel St. Hubert died. Hubert died last month, New York Post reported.
Hubert, who was serving 50 years to life at Green Haven Correctional Facility in Stormville, died just after 2 pm on December 17, the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision confirmed. “This is what you call true justice. He is rotting in hell now,” Regenia Trevathan, the great-grandmother of one of Hubert’s victims, told the outlet.
According to the Duchess County Medical Examiner’s Office, St. Hubert’s death was “not considered suspicious.” The official cause of death would be released once the investigation into the case is closed.
Who was Daniel St. Hubert?
Back in 2018, Hubert was convicted of killing Prince Joshua Avitto, 6, and attempting to murder the child’s best friend, Mikalaya Capers, 7. However, Capers survived even after being stabbed as many as 16 times.
The two children were on their way to grab ice cream when Hubert attacked them inside the Boulevard Houses in East New York. Capers is now 17 and goes to college, and tries not to think about Hubert, but is often haunted by the memories of the terrifying attack. “Sometimes I try not to remember this bad man and what he did to me and P.J.,” she said. “But every day I must look at my body and see those 16 stab wounds for the rest of my life.”
At his sentencing in 2018, Hubert claimed he was innocent. “I’m a good guy,” he said. “I’ve been a good guy my whole life. I was actually trying to chase a career for being a Hollywood actor. I told them since the beginning that I’m innocent. I’d never done this, and I would never kill two kids.”
Capers’ great-grandmother and legal guardian, Trevathan, said she was grateful for the support the family has been receiving since the incident. “I thank everybody for their prayers and their continued prayers for Mykala that she continues on the path to succeed in life’s journey in spite of everything she went through,” she said.
Avitto’s mother, Aricka McClinton, said Hubert’s death has brought a sense of closure. “I kind of feel good because now my child can rest in peace. It has been 10 years too long,” McClinton said. “Now I can feel a little closure within myself.”
Of her son, she added, “I miss him every day. He would be 17 years old now. He was a little gentleman then and normally when they start that way, they stay that way – he would still be a gentleman today.”