SHE HAD JUST RETURNED FROM MATERNITY LEAVE — THEN A RANDOM TIMES SQUARE ATTACK TOOK THE LIFE OF A 32-YEAR-OLD BANK OF AMERICA VP

Erin Piacenti had just returned to work after five months of maternity leave.

It was supposed to be the beginning of a new chapter.

The 32-year-old Bank of America vice president had recently welcomed her first child, moved into a new home in New Jersey with her husband and was building a life around her young family.

Then, on her first day back at work, everything changed.

Piacenti was walking through New York City’s Times Square on Monday, Aug. 31, when she became one of two people targeted in what police described as a random and unprovoked attack.

She was taken to Bellevue Hospital.

She did not survive.

Now, her family, colleagues and friends are mourning a young mother whose life had been filled with plans for the future.

SHE HAD JUST BECOME A MOTHER

Piacenti’s death is particularly heartbreaking because of how much had changed in her life in just a few months.

She and her husband, Frank, had welcomed their daughter Madison, who was about five months old when her mother died.

Piacenti had spent months away from work on maternity leave before returning to her career at Bank of America.

According to reports, she had been back at work for less than a week when the Times Square tragedy occurred.

Her return to Manhattan was supposed to be part of a normal routine — a working mother beginning to balance her career with life as a new parent.

Instead, she never made it home.

THE ATTACK HAPPENED IN BROAD DAYLIGHT

The incident unfolded shortly after 4 p.m. near West 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue, one of the busiest areas in Manhattan.

Police identified the attacker as 49-year-old Pamela Cisneros.

According to investigators, Cisneros had two large knives and first confronted another pedestrian, 68-year-old Tak Kam.

Kam survived the encounter and was taken to a hospital.

Piacenti was then attacked nearby.

She suffered serious injuries and was transported to Bellevue Hospital, where she later died.

The incident happened in an area filled with tourists, commuters, businesses and theatergoers.

Times Square is one of the most heavily visited areas in New York City, making the sudden violence particularly shocking to witnesses and people nearby.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the attack appeared to be random and unprovoked.

Authorities have not indicated that Piacenti knew Cisneros.

POLICE CONFRONTED THE ATTACKER MOMENTS LATER

After the two civilians were attacked, responding NYPD officers confronted Cisneros.

Police ordered her to drop the knives.

She refused.

According to authorities, Cisneros then advanced toward officers while still holding the weapons.

Officers attempted to use a Taser, but it did not stop her.

They then opened fire.

Cisneros was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where she later died.

The NYPD’s Force Investigation Division is reviewing the police use of force, as required in officer-involved shootings.

Authorities have said there was no indication the incident was terrorism-related.

A WOMAN WITH A PROMISING CAREER

Away from the tragedy, Piacenti had built an impressive professional life.

She was a vice president at Bank of America, working in the bank’s business selection and conflicts unit.

The company described her as a valued teammate and expressed deep sorrow over her sudden loss.

Before joining Bank of America, Piacenti had built experience in both law and business.

She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and later attended Fordham Law School, where she met her future husband.

She had also worked in other prominent professional roles before moving into banking.

For colleagues, however, her résumé tells only part of the story.

She was also a wife.

A daughter.

A new mother.

And a friend.

HER FAMILY HAD JUST STARTED A NEW LIFE

Piacenti and Frank had recently moved to Chester, New Jersey.

The couple had also recently celebrated their second wedding anniversary.

Their daughter Madison was still only five months old.

The family had been building what appeared to be a promising new chapter together.

Now Frank is facing the unimaginable task of raising their daughter without her mother.

Piacenti’s family has asked for privacy as they grieve.

A fundraising campaign has also been established to support Madison’s future following the loss of her mother.

BANK OF AMERICA REMEMBERS A ‘VALUED TEAMMATE’

The tragedy has also sent shockwaves through Piacenti’s professional community.

Bank of America said it was “shocked and deeply saddened” by her loss and described her as a valued member of the team.

Her former academic community at Fordham Law also mourned her death.

For those who knew her professionally, Monday’s events were difficult to comprehend.

She had gone to work.

She had spent the day in one of the world’s busiest cities.

And she was simply trying to make her way home to her family.

Instead, she became the victim of a seemingly random act of violence.

THE QUESTIONS THAT REMAIN

Investigators are still working to establish the full circumstances surrounding the attack.

Police have said Cisneros had a documented history of mental-health-related encounters with the NYPD, including incidents in previous years.

But authorities have not identified a broader motive for the attack.

The NYPD is also reviewing the circumstances surrounding the officers’ use of force after Cisneros refused commands and advanced toward them with the knives.

For now, investigators are piecing together what happened during those critical minutes in Times Square.

SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO GO HOME

Perhaps the most painful detail for Piacenti’s family is also the simplest.

She had just returned to work.

She had a five-month-old daughter waiting for her at home.

She had a husband with whom she had recently celebrated another year of marriage.

She had a career she had worked hard to build.

She had a new home and a future she was still creating.

And then, in the middle of a crowded Manhattan afternoon, that future disappeared.

Erin Piacenti was 32.

She was a new mother.

She was a wife, daughter, friend and accomplished professional.

And her family is now left to raise Madison while carrying the memory of the mother who never got the chance to watch her daughter grow up.

She had spent five months preparing to return to work.
She never got the chance to return home.