A “generous” elderly man was brutally stabbed to death inside his Manhattan apartment early Monday by a roommate he’d taken in just days earlier, after his mother had kicked him out, cops and neighbors said.
Alon Riabichev, 45, is facing murder charges in the vicious slaying of Lev Vayner, 80, after an argument turned deadly at their 37 Overlook Terrace residence in Hudson Heights around 3:15 a.m., police and sources said.
Vayner, who neighbors described as selfless, was stabbed in the abdomen and neck before he died in his first floor unit, police confirmed.
The victim and suspect were roommates, sources said. Kyle Mazza/Shutterstock“It’s terrible. Terrible. He was very generous and he tried to help,” Juanita Abreu, who lived on the block, said of Vayner.
“I don’t have any explanation. I can only tell you that this neighborhood was good for a very long time. Good people. Now I see homeless people on the street all the time. Smoking, drinking in the street.”
Riabichev called 911 following the fatal encounter and was arrested in the building, sources said, adding that a knife was found at the scene.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene. Kyle Mazza/ShutterstockHe’s been arrested at least seven times over theft of services, according to sources.
The suspected killer was only living with Vaynor for about a week after he was booted out by his mother, another neighbor said, claiming Riabichev’s reckless lifestyle led to his eviction.
“A few days ago, last week, his mother threw him out,” a female building resident who did not want to be identified told The Post. “It was terrible. It’s complicated. He was also drinking and maybe using the drugs. It broke her heart.
The stabbing happened around 3:15 a.m. Robert Mecea“He was on the street with nowhere to go and Mr. Vayner took pity. He tried to help. He took him in. I heard (Riabichev’s) mother talking to the police this morning.”
No one answered the door when The Post knocked on the mother’s door.
The roommates got into a dispute leading up to the stabbing, sources said, though it was not immediately clear what led to the argument.
Riabichev was charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon hours later, the NYPD said.
“I didn’t hear anything. I didn’t hear any yelling, I didn’t hear any commotion,” said another resident who lived on the floor above Vayner.
“All I heard was the police knocking on my door at 3 a.m.”
