The woman accused of stabbing a postal worker to death in a line at a Harlem deli has a history of knife violence — and once threatened to “cut off” one of her previous victims.
Jaia Cruz was arrested at least five times before allegedly committing Thursday’s brutal murder, law enforcement sources told The Post.
In July 2020, Cruz was caught waving an open box cutter at another person in Midtown West and yelling, “I’m going to cut him off,” sources said. Cruz was ordered to get on the ground but refused.
Cruz was ordered to get on the ground but refused. She was then pulled away by officers and arrested for resisting arrest.
Just two weeks later, Cruz was arrested again for a 4:30 a.m. tag team robbery. She and another person used knives to steal a man’s phone and wallet after the victim invited the pair to ‘hang out’.
The repeat offender — who has been described by police as a transgender woman — is now charged with murder for the brutal stabbing of Ray Hodges, an on-duty USPS letter carrier who was having lunch at the deli at 168 Lenox Ave.
Hodges, 36, skipped the line directly in front of Cruz, inciting the knife-wielding woman, sources said.
She then allegedly gutted him in the stomach. He was rushed to Harlem Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries, police said.
