Suspected madman stabber has a lengthy criminal history and was released from New York prison just a month before his deadly spree

The suspect behind it is crazy deadly stabbing spree They had a long criminal history in Manhattan and had escaped from Rikers Island a month before the horrific attacks, The Post has learned.

Ramon Rivera, 51, identified by sources as the person of interest in the bloodbath, was released from prison Oct. 17 on an expired sentence for a string of recent burglary and assault convictions after spending most of this year behind bars, sources said. .

This statement surprised Mayor Eric Adams; NYPD investigators are looking into how a career criminal with a history of mental illness could be free despite his recent conviction, Adams said.

“We’re still reviewing his record, but there’s a real question as to why he’s on the street,” he said.

Court records show that on the same day he was released, Rivera was arrested again on a grand theft charge after prosecutors said he stole an acrylic bowl worth about $1,500 from the upscale Jonathan Adler store in Tribeca in December 2023.

Manhattan prosecutors pushed for bail, and a judge ordered his release on non-monetary conditions ahead of his Dec. 4 trial date, records show.

Sources revealed that Rivera has been arrested at least eight times in the past in New York City, has a history of mental health issues and years of police confrontations in several states.

Many details of Rivera’s record remained unclear as of Monday evening, but the broad strokes paint a portrait of a troubled, at times violent man who lived outside the law for decades.

Rivera’s final stint behind bars began Feb. 19, when NYPD officers arrested him in connection with a string of burglaries in Manhattan, sources said.

According to sources, the thefts date back to December 2023, when a thief broke the glass doors and windows of taverns and tobacco shops and stole thousands of dollars worth of cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and lighters.

Sources said Rivera spent months in custody at Rikers Island as prosecutors consolidated the theft charges into a single indictment.

Sources said Rivera spent several days in Bellevue Hospital’s psychiatric ward in May, where authorities said he assaulted a corrections officer.

Sources said that in August, he confessed to the crime of theft and was sentenced to 364 days in prison. The next month, he pleaded guilty to assaulting a corrections officer and was sentenced to 90 days in prison, to be served concurrently with the theft sentence, sources said.

Sources said Rivera was finally released after serving three-quarters of his original sentence, or nine months.

Rivera’s run-ins with NYPD officers also included two mental health incidents in November and December 2023, sources said.

The NYPD was monitoring Rivera as a burglary suspect, while cops in Union City, New Jersey, arrested him in January as a fugitive from justice and burglary suspect, sources said.

According to sources, Hoboken police arrested him for two felonies at the time.

Rivera also has a criminal record in several other states.

He was also arrested in a 2017 assault case in Cleveland, Ohio, sources said. According to sources, Florida authorities had arrested him several times by 2003 on charges ranging from domestic violence to procuring prostitutes and driving under the influence.