Husband indicted in wife’s murder

A Kingsbridge Heights man has been indicted for stabbing his estranged wife to death at her apartment on Grand Concourse back in June.
According to the Bronx District Attorney’s office, Argenis Baez, 33, went to the home of Arianna Reyes — his estranged wife and New York Police Department transit officer — and forced his way inside the apartment.
The defendant then allegedly stabbed Reyes, 31, eight times with a knife and fled the apartment. Video surveillance shows Baez, who last lived on Sedgwick Avenue, leaving the residence with a knife in his hand and driving away.
Following the attack, Reyes was able to call a relative who alerted 911 to the stabbing. Emergency responders attempted to save her but she was eventually pronounced dead at the scene. Reyes worked as a transit cop after joining the force in 2019 and was assigned to a bureau in Brooklyn.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said in a press release, Reyes “leaves behind a young child. I send my condolences to her family and extended NYPD family who lost a dedicated public servant to domestic violence.” According to the DA’s office, the couple’s 3-year-old child was not in the apartment at the time of the attack.
Later that day, Baez turned himself in to the NYPD and was charged with second-degree murder. Although estranged from one another, the couple had no history of domestic violence disputes in the past, according to media reports.
While a motive has not been established, Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson said in a statement that this homicide is a reminder to put more resources into domestic violence prevention.
‘It can happen to anyone, even police officers, even first responders,” she said. “So it just reminds us that we have to keep doing this work, we have to keep focusing on resources and programs for victims of domestic violence, giving them a safe space and an outlet to go to.’
Shortly after the news of her murder broke, the NYPD wrote on social media, “Today, we mourn. Our hearts are heavy as we investigate the tragic murder of an NYPD officer who was off-duty last night in the Bronx. We’re here for her loved ones, her fellow cops — and to ensure the person responsible is brought to justice.”
If convicted, Baez could face a life sentence. He was remanded and is due back in court Oct. 12.