By New York Post (U.S.) | Created at 2026-09-12 22:26:22 | Updated at 2026-09-12 23:17:05
57 minutes ago
A person of interest in the vicious killing of a Manhattan mom – who was beaten to death in front of her 7-year-old daughter – turned himself into police for questioning on Saturday, his attorney told The Post.
Tiliek Shamel Thompson, 41, surrendered to police at the 33rd Precinct station house in the killing of Lovay Williams, 27, lawyer Neville Dexter said.
“He’s at the precinct right now,” Dexter said.
Dexter explained that someone had been on social media implicating Thompson in the killing, but said, “Everybody should reserve judgement. We don’t know what happened.”
Dexter didn’t reveal how his client would plead. Cops have identified Thompson as a “person of interest,” a police source said.
Police officers found Williams’ body after being called to her home on 156th Street near Amsterdam Avenue in Washington Heights for a wellness check shortly after 1:30 p.m. on Sept. 6, police said.
The victim’s brother, Nuquan Williams, said whoever killed his sister doesn’t deserve to be free.
“Man up to the things you did!” said Williams, a state corrections officer. “It was horrific. You don’t deserve to walk the streets and enjoy life when you took a life.”
He confirmed that his niece, De’lani, was in the home when her mom’s remains were found but said the girl was holding up well, so far.
“We’ve been buying her toys and things like that,” the uncle said. “I don’t think she’s emotionally intelligent enough to process what’s actually going on yet, being that she’s so young.”
His niece is a “loving spirit” who has been going to school, “doing what she has to do,” he said.
“She’s holding up strong,” he said. “She hasn’t freaked out or anything like that. She’s such a sweet girl.”
He described his sister as “one in a million.”
“She was the best mom, and no one could ever compare to her,” he said. “This is such a big loss for us.”
Asia Walker, who described herself as the victim’s “God sister,” cried while attaching green balloons to an ad hoc memorial site next to the apartment building where she was killed.
“Turning himself in would be the best thing for me,” the 33-year-old said. “Honestly, I know we ain’t gotta worry about him hurting nobody else and my niece can be at ease. Tomorrow will be a little better for me. I could sleep at night.”
She wasn’t sure how the two met, she said, but they had been together “for a while.”
“It’s confusing to me because we knew this man for too long,” Walker said. “I don’t even know what caused this. I can’t remember (her) saying they even argued before.”
The family has created a GoFundMe page to raise money for the girl.
