Waldiman Thompson,91, and his wife, Ethlin,100, were well-known in their Brooklyn, New York, neighborhood. Married for over 30 years, they were always greeting neighbors with “Have a blessed day.” Now Waldiman is dead and Ethlin is battered and bruised at the hands of neighborhood thugs.
According to the NY Daily News, at 3:15 p.m. on Wednesday, four men broke into the elderly couple’s home and attacked them. Waldiman was tied up by his arms and legs and his wife Ethlin was also bound and had a blanket put over her head. While the thieves rummaged through the home, the frail Ethlin somehow escaped her bonds and ran from the house. According to witnesses, Ethlin stated, “They tied me and my husband up and robbed us. … My husband is lying down there and he might be dead.”
When police were called they responded within 15 minutes but the criminals had fled the scene. Inside the home, they found Waldiman still tied and unconscious. First responders performed CPR on the man but he was later pronounced dead.
The community was shocked by the news and it was felt that the crooks were looking for money. The Jamaican immigrant couple was known to give cash to families and individuals in need. At one time, the couple had converted their house to serve as a home for the functionally disabled.
The NYPD is treating the incident as a “homicide home invasion robbery.”
So far one man was taken into custody for questioning but has not been charged. Police are also looking for two men spotted on surveillance video carrying a bag in the area. According to an NYPD spokesperson, there were no signs of forced entry and the couple might have known their attackers.
