Mamdani Expresses Grief Over New Yorker's Death at Rikers Island, Amid Controversy Surrogn

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Mamdani Expresses Grief Over New Yorker's Death at Rikers Island, Amid Controversy Surrogn
Photo: PBS NewsHour
politics· A press review of 11 outlets
  1. “I am deeply saddened by the death of a New Yorker in City custody at a jail on Rikers Island early this morning,” Mamdani said. “My thoughts are with his family and loved ones as they grieve this loss.”

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    Fox News

    "I am deeply saddened by the death of a New Yorker in City custody at a jail on Rikers Island early this morning," Mamdani posted on X.

  2. Clarence Woodward, the man Mamdani was referencing, was arrested in 2024 and charged with murder, manslaughter and assault in connection with an unprovoked meat cleaver attack at a Bronx laundromat. At the time, Woodward had 27 prior arrests and had received parole just a month prior to the alleged killing. Woodward had pleaded not guilty to the charges and had not been convicted.

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    Breitbart

    The inmate had been charged with killing a shop owner in an unprovoked meat-cleaver attack. Clarence Woodward, a 39-year-old homeless parolee, was arrested following the August 8, 2024, attack at the 303 Laundromat in the Bronx. He was charged with murder, manslaughter, and assault.

  3. "My thoughts are with his family and loved ones as they grieve this loss. We do not yet know the cause of death, but we do know that too many New Yorkers have died on Rikers Island. The Department of Correction and its oversight partners will investigate the circumstances surrounding his death. Our administration is fully committed to the critical work of creating better conditions in our city’s jail system and closing Rikers Island as quickly as possible."

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    Breitbart

    Mamdani said officials have not yet determined what caused the inmate’s death. “We do not yet know the cause of death, but we do know that too many New Yorkers have died on Rikers Island,” he said.

  4. A communist-era officer, Mladic sided with the Serbs as Yugoslavia disintegrated in the war. Mladic first led a Serb insurgency in Croatia before taking over the Bosnian Serb army that was backed by Serbia and then-President Slobodan Milosevic, who also died in the custody of the Hague court in 2006 while on trial for genocide.

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    Washington Times

    A communist-era officer, Mladic sided with the Serbs as Yugoslavia disintegrated in the war. Mladic first led a Serb insurgency in Croatia before taking over the Bosnian Serb army that was backed by Serbia and then-President Slobodan Milosevic, who also died in the custody of the Hague court in 2006 while on trial for genocide.

    Associated Press

    A communist-era officer, Mladic sided with the Serbs as Yugoslavia disintegrated in the war. Mladic first led a Serb insurgency in Croatia before taking over the Bosnian Serb army that was backed by Serbia and then-President Slobodan Milosevic, who also died in the custody of the Hague court in 2006 while on trial for genocide.

    NPR News

    BELGRADE, Serbia — Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb general who oversaw atrocities in Bosnia in the 1990s, has died in prison at age 84, the Serbian state RTS television and the official Bosnian Serb television reported.

    Washington Examiner

    Mladic was one of, if not the most, reviled figures in non-Serb areas of Bosnia, Croatia, and the wider Western world, even more so than Radovan Karadzic, the former President of Republika Srpska, and former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic. His “Butcher of Bosnia” descriptor was used across the Western press over his leadership of Bosnian Serb forces during the civil war’s two most infamous events: the Siege of Sarajevo and the Srebrenica Massacre.

    PBS NewsHour

    Ratko Mladic, ex-Bosnian Serb warlord who oversaw atrocities, dies in prison at 84 The bullish Bosnian Serb general whose forces rained shells and snipers' bullets on Sarajevo and carried out the worst massacre in Europe since World War II has died while serving a life sentence for his crimes, U.N. officials said.

    BBC News

    After the Bosnian war, Mladić went on the run for 16 years until he was finally tracked down in rural Serbia in 2011 and put on trial at The Hague.

    New York Times

    Ratko Mladic, Murderous ‘Butcher of Bosnia,’ Dies at 83 A general during the Balkan wars of the 1990s, he was convicted in the killing of some 8,000 Muslims at Srebrenica, Europe’s deadliest massacre since World War II.

    Reuters

    Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic, convicted of genocide, has died, Serbian TV reports - Reuters Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic, convicted of genocide, has died, Serbian TV reports  Reuters

  5. Munira Subasic, from the Mothers of Srebrenica group, said she had mixed feelings about Mladic’s death and deplored that Mladic’s crimes are still being denied among many Bosnian Serbs.

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    Washington Times

    Munira Subasic, from the Mothers of Srebrenica group, said she had mixed feelings about Mladic’s death and deplored that Mladic’s crimes are still being denied among many Bosnian Serbs.

    Washington Examiner

    Munira Subasic, the head of Mothers of Srebrenica, whose son and husband were killed by Bosnian Serb forces, was quoted by the Associated Press describing him as a symbol of all the “horrible crimes” that happened during the war.

From the margins

7 details only one outlet reported

Independent claims that didn't surface elsewhere in our corpus. Treat as supplementary — not corroborated across outlets.

  1. 01 Fox News

    As of Thursday morning, Mamdani’s post has been viewed over 3.2 million times, with the majority of comments expressing outrage over Mamdani offering condolences to the inmate.

  2. 02 Washington Examiner

    Mladic’s family and Serbian authorities had been warning of his ailing health for months. Just a few days before his death, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic made one final appeal for a humanitarian release, saying that he was “de facto dying.” He pleaded for him to be allowed to die in his country.

  3. 03 ABC News

    “I am sorry that he died and that he did not suffer for a little while longer, that he didn’t wait for more and dream about the eyes of our children,” she said.

  4. 04 Washington Times

    “I am sorry that he died and that he did not suffer for a little while longer, that he didn’t wait for more and dream about the eyes of our children,” she said.

  5. 05 Associated Press

    Carried away by Serb dominance in firepower and international ignorance, Mladic was convinced of his final victory.

  6. 06 BBC News

    He and his political counterpart, Radovan Karadžić, ripped Bosnia apart - committing acts of genocide and vicious crimes against humanity.

  7. 07 Breitbart

    Miranda was a father of two who was known for his work as an artist, tattooist, and barber, according to a fundraiser created by his family after his death. Woodward had reportedly been released from prison about a month before the attack.

Assembled from 5 corroborated claims drawn from 11 independent outlets. Every passage above is taken verbatim — Dorothy doesn't paraphrase or summarize.

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Coverage by Perspective

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Lean-Right
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Sources (11)

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  • abc
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  • ap
  • foxnews
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  • washexaminer
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  • washtimes
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Original Articles (14)