Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Family, neighbors seek answers after Upper West Side super kills family in suspected murder-suicide
By
Brittany Kriegstein
and
Catalina Gonella
Published Aug 29, 2023
Modified Aug 29, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Brittany Kriegstein
By
Brittany Kriegstein
and
Catalina Gonella
Published Aug 29, 2023
Modified Aug 29, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The father of the 41-year-old man suspected of killing himself, his wife, and their two young children in their Upper West Side apartment on Monday said he saw no signs of distress from his son in the lead-up to the horrific incident.
Police confirmed they’re investigating the stabbing deaths of Edison Lopez; Aleksandra "Ola" Witek, 40; Calvin Lopez, 1; and Lucien Lopez, 3, as a murder-suicide.
The four were found in their fourth-floor apartment in a building on West 86th Street and Riverside Drive where Edison Lopez worked as the superintendent.
Edison Lopez took over the job from his father, Mario Lopez, who moved to another building nearby.
“If you look around and ask their friends – very levelheaded individuals. Both of them,” Mario Lopez, 66, told Gothamist by phone about his son and Witek. “You usually see problems in a couple where you see the behavior of the children affected immediately. Their grandmother, my wife, took care of them. We didn’t see anything.”
Edison Lopez
Courtesy of Alfonso Barrera
Police said they recovered multiple knives from the apartment. Cops had no record of domestic violence among the family.
Mario Lopez said he and his wife discovered the horrific scene on Monday after she was unable to reach the family or open the apartment door. Mario Lopez said he punched one of the locks in.
“We saw them inside,” he said, holding back tears. “They were already dead, whatever happened, happened maybe the day before.”
Mario Lopez recalled spending time with the family over the past weekend. Lucien Lopez played with a new toy Jeep. Nothing had seemed amiss, Mario Lopez said.
Edison Lopez was also on track to start a new job next week as the super of a building in Hastings-on-Hudson, his father said. The family was planning to move into a more spacious apartment.
Alexandra Witek and her two children.
Via Facebook
Witek’s family and close friends launched a GoFundMe on Tuesday asking for help with funeral, burial and legal fees, collecting more than $11,000 within the first two hours. The site’s organizers also confirmed it was Witek’s family who called authorities after she stopped responding to calls and messages and didn’t show up for family commitments.
The post, signed “Family, Friends and Loved ones of the Witek family,” described Witek as “an incredibly loving and devoted stay-at-home mom to her two young sons,” who took pride in sharing her Polish culture with her children.
“Being a NYC school teacher, she instilled her knowledge and teachings on the growth of her boys who had blossoming imaginations and whose curiosity and sweetness to family and friends alike captured everyone’s hearts,” the post read. “Her boys loved playing with their toys, story time with mom, and were two delightful babies to all that loved them. She was an adored friend, beloved sister to her brother Lukas, and cherished daughter of Grazyna.”
Witek’s family wrote they “are heartbroken and incensed.”
The killing stunned residents of the Riverside Drive co-op building. Many said they’d watched Edison Lopez grow up with his father, take over as super and start a family.
“The feelings, we were here at 9/11, and this comes close to that kind of trauma,” said Richard Allen, 74, a resident for over two decades. “When he was a kid, my wife had him come and take care of her cats when she was gone.”
Allen said that Edison Lopez seemed as friendly as usual just last week when they fixed a window together in his sixth-floor apartment.
“There’s always a reason, and we may never know what the reason was,” Allen said, his voice trembling. “I got two sons, and I can’t imagine killing a 1-year-old and a 3-year-old with a knife.”
Neighbors left flowers at the building’s front door on Tuesday morning. One person left two toy cars next to a bouquet of sunflowers as neighbors reminisced about seeing Witek take the boys to Riverside Park.
Mario Lopez said the family is still trying to process the horror.
“It’s not a good situation for anyone. We just need to grieve and go ahead with our lives. That’s all there is,” he said.
This story has been updated with info on a GoFundMe page.
Editor's note: A previous version of this story had the incorrect spelling of Aleksandra Witek's first name. This story has also been updated to reflect the preferred name of Aleksandra Witek's mother. Her name is is Grazyna.
Tagged
crime
manhattan
Brittany Kriegstein
Brittany Kriegstein covers all breaking news around New York City, with a focus on crime and gun violence. Got a tip? Email Brittany at [email protected].
Read more
Catalina Gonella
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
Mid-October through mid-December is deer mating season, which can be a danger to drivers as the sex-seeking creatures cross roadways throughout the Garden State.
By
Rosemary Misdary
Published Oct 16, 2026
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
News
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
Inside the plan to fix the nearly collapsed Pfizer Building, 1/64th of an inch at a time
By
David Brand
School bus carrying autistic students got lost in Brooklyn for 4 hours last year
By
Jessica Gould
NYC’s bridges can last 'forever,' if we take care of them
By
Clayton Guse
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .