The Museum of Modern Art in New York was evacuated on Saturday afternoon after a stabbing took place inside the museum, ARTnews reported. The suspect, a 60-year-old man named Gary Cabana, entered the museum in the late afternoon and had been previously notified in writing that his membership had been revoked due to two prior incidents of disorderly conduct.
John Miller, deputy commissioner for the NYPD’s Intelligence and Counterterrorism department, said at a press conference held on Saturday evening that the individual who attacked the workers was a member at the museum. The man’s membership had been revoked after two incidents of “disorderly conduct” at the museum “in recent days.”
“He became upset about not being allowed entrance, and then jumped over the reception desk and proceeded to attack and stab two employees at the museum multiple times,” Miller said.
Miller said that the MoMA employees were taken to Bellevue Hospital, where they were treated. They were “going to be okay,” he said. The NYPD released a photograph of Cabana on Saturday evening.
Some museum visitors took to social media to document the evacuation. Videos posted by various users on Twitter appear to show dozens of visitors exiting the museum as police cars close off the area of West 53rd Street where MoMA is sited.
The police are still searching for Cabana. Under New York law, assault with a knife (considered a deadly weapon) in the first degree is a felony offense that, depending on the person’s arrest record, carries a conviction of around two years in prison, up to a $5,000 fine (in addition to parole fees and other charges) and up to $15,000 in restitution to each victim.
