Jamel McGriff in custody after couple severely burned in 'horrific double homicide' in NYC: Police
A man wanted for torturing and killing an elderly couple in Queens before setting their home on fire was taken into custody in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, the NYPD said.
The search for 42-year-old Jamel McGriff came to an end Wednesday after NYPD officers spotted him near Times Square and took him into custody at West 44th Street and Seventh Avenue around 5:40 p.m., according to NYPD officials.
Police nabbed McGriff using technology that tracked him across the city as he used his victims' credit cards.
Officers throughout the city were being constantly updated through the NYPD's domain awareness system, and its high-tech critical messaging app.
Police were closely tracking the credit card usage, and every time McGriff used the credit card, officers in the immediate vicinity were notified.
When he used the victims' credit card at the Regal Union Square movie theater, then made his way to Times Square, police officers who had just received the notification spotted and arrested him.
Police say McGriff set Frank and Maureen Olton, 76 and 77 years old, on fire after spending five hours inside their home. The "horrific double homicide" has left the Bellerose neighborhood -- and the city -- in shock.
Officers say he was seen on video Tuesday pawning two cellphones in the Bronx.
McGriff, described by police as a career criminal, is a level 3 sex offender with a lengthy criminal record stretching 30 years. He was released from prison in 2023.
Officers say he was walking around earlier in the day knocking on neighbors' doors and asking to charge his phone.
New surveillance video shows McGriff walk past Frank Olton standing at the rear gate of his home. McGriff doubled back and spoke to Frank before being let into the home.
At least one neighbor said they turned the suspect away before he approached the victims' house.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch shared chilling details about how the couple was killed and found.
"Mr. Olton was found in the basement, tied to a pole with multiple stab wounds. Mrs. Olton was found on the first floor, severely burned," Tisch said. "At this time, there is no known connection between Mr. McGriff, our suspect, and our victims beyond this chance encounter."
Police say he exited the victims' home carrying two bags.
Detectives with the Department of Homeless Services showed up to McGriff's last known address on Creston Avenue in the Bronx on Wednesday.
A man named Victor said he has lived in the same shelter with the suspect for the last six months.
"And the guy walked around here like he was some kind of tough guy. And then you go and murder an elderly man?" Victor said. "He was off. I'm not a doctor, I'm not a psychic, I'm a Christian. I'm a man of God. I'm just saying he just felt off."
A spokesperson with Department of Social Services said they were working closely with authorities to support the investigation.
McGriff served 16 years in prison for an armed robbery and is wanted in two more armed robberies this summer.
