A 95-year-old woman has been charged with murder after she allegedly beat her 89-year-old roommate to death at a nursing home in Brooklyn.
Galina Smirnova was arrested Tuesday, Sept. 16, in connection with the death of 89-year-old Nina Kravtsov. She was arraigned Wednesday, Sept. 17, and sent into custody.
She faces charges of second-degree murder and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by PEOPLE, police were called to the Seagate Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Coney Island around 10:30 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 14. Witnesses told police they found Kravtsov “laying in her bed, non-responsive, covered in blood, and with gash marks about her face and head.”
Witnesses said Smirnova was in the bathroom wearing a bloody hospital gown. She allegedly “had blood on her legs, and the defendant was washing her hands in the bathroom sink.”
Officers found a wheelchair in the room with the footrest and legs removed. One foot pedal was on the floor, covered in blood, and the other was outside the room under a window, according to the complaint.
Kravtsov was taken to NYU Langone Hospital in Brooklyn, where she was pronounced dead. Authorities determined she died from blunt force trauma.
The Brooklyn District Attorney’s office asked for a mental health examination for Smirnova, which her lawyer opposed. The judge did not order the evaluation, the DA’s office told PEOPLE.
Smirnova’s lawyer could not be reached for comment. She is scheduled to return to court on Friday, according to jail records, which do not show where she is being held.
