ELMONT, N.Y. — A man is facing murder charges after police said he stabbed his ex-girlfriend to death early Sunday at Belmont Racetrack on Long Island, CBS New York reports.
Security guards at the racetrack became alarmed when they noticed a horse running loose around 6 a.m., police said. They proceeded to investigate a barn where investigators discovered a 51-year-old woman with multiple stab wounds. She was rushed to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Jose Franco-Martinez, 53, was arrested at the scene and charged with second-degree murder. He is scheduled to make a court appearance Monday.
“The female was a hot walker,” Nassau County Homicide Detective Lieutenant Stephen Fitzpatrick said. “She cools the horse down, she walks them after they’re done with a training session.”
The victim was walking a horse at the time of the incident, Fitzpatrick said. Her identification was being withheld pending family notification.
Belmont Racetrack is home to the annual Belmont Stakes, the third and final leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown.
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