An unidentified homeless man was slain a week ago Saturday under the Viaduct in Union City, allegedly by a homeless woman who allegedly had a dispute with his friend, prosecutors said. The woman was arrested on murder charges.
Nellie Rodriquez, 44, was taken to the Jersey City Medical Center for treatment of a hand wound and kept under guard Saturday after the Hudson County Prosecutor’s office and the Union City police determined that a homicide had occurred. The male victim’s age has not been determined, although according to Union City Police Captain Brian Barrett, his age has been “estimated” to be between 40 and 50 years old.
Said Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio, “We were called in once the Union City police determined that this was a homicide. The condition of the body indicated that it was a homicide. There were multiple stab wounds and signs of blunt force trauma.”
The Union City police and the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office said that this was the third homicide in Union City his year. One occurred in April and one in September. It was the first homicide involving the homeless who live or congregate under the Viaduct.
Said DeFazio, “This, unfortunately, is not a new thing. [The homeless] have been setting up camp under the viaduct for years and they have some extra protection under the Viaduct.”
While there has been an 8.2 percent rise in violent crime in nearby Hoboken this year, and there have been more than a dozen murders in neighboring Jersey City, Union City officials declined to say that the crime was part of any kind of similar trend in Union City. Law enforcement officials classified the incident as a “dispute that got out of hand,” according to Capt. Barrett.
According to Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Pat Raviola, “It would appear that a friend and or relative of the victim had, earlier in the evening, cut the defendant. She left the scene, and some time later, returned to the scene. She couldn’t find the person who cut her, so she [allegedly] went after a person that knew the person.”
Said Barrett, “There are many opportunities for these people to go other places, but they like it there [under the Viaduct]. There were a lot more there in the past then there are now. No matter what we do, they want to be under that bridge. The patrol and detective divisions go under there from time to time, but there’s not much we can do. They want to be there.”
Barrett also declined to characterize this incident as a “homeless homicide,” stating that “it’s hard to prevent this kind of thing. I wouldn’t even call a lot of them ‘homeless.’ A lot of them have jobs; they stay with friends or sleep at St. John’s [Shelter in Union City]. Some of them do have places to go, but they like to be there.”
Added Barrett, “We haven’t had a lot of calls there.”