Homeless Man Pleads Not Guilty to Murder Charges in Chinatown Beating Deaths
The crime scene, Oct. 2019
The homeless man accused of bludgeoning to death four other homeless men on the Bowery last month returned to court Monday for the arraignment.
Investigators charged 24-year-old Randy Santos with four counts of murder, and one charge of attempted murder (one man survived the beating), for attacking his victims with a three-foot piece of scrap metal while they slept. Santos has been held in a psychiatric ward since the crime, and pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Santos is held without bail and reportedly returned to the prison ward at Bellevue Hospital after his court appearance.
The victims spanned generations, ranging in age from 39 to 83. Three were homeless, while the fourth was a Staten Island homeowner who may have fallen asleep while visiting his friends on the streets.
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