NEW YORK − A 43-year-old woman is accused of repeatedly stabbing a mother who was changing her baby’s diaper inside a Macy’s in Manhattan.

On the afternoon of Dec. 11, Kerri Aherne, of Tewksbury, Massachusetts, allegedly entered a bathroom inside the Macy’s flagship Herald Square store and began stabbing the mother several times in the back and left arm, according to Manhattan prosecutors.

The mother, visiting with her family from California, was changing her 10-month-old’s diaper when she was attacked. During the attack, the baby fell from the table onto the floor, which later caused swelling to the child’s forehead and redness, prosecutors said.

Aherne later told officials that she has a history of psychiatric problems, and she was looking for someone to kill because voices in her head said she had to kill someone or be killed, prosecutors said.

The mother, a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department employee, eventually subdued Aherne, prosecutors said, adding Macy’s security apprehended Aherne until New York City police arrived. The mother and her significant other both work in the sheriff’s department, the agency confirmed in an email.

The mother was taken to a local hospital in stable condition, NYPD said. She required stitches for two stab wounds in the back, and she also had a cut on her arm, prosecutors said.

The evening of Dec. 12, Aherne pleaded not guilty in Manhattan Criminal Court to attempted murder, second-degree assault and endangering a child's welfare, according to court records. Aherne had no attorney listed. She’s held without bail at the Rikers Island jail complex.

Aherne has no criminal history in New York, prosecutors said. In 2018, she was arrested in her Massachusetts hometown after allegedly posting on Facebook about killing U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and shooting someone at a police station, prosecutors said.

Aherne told officials she had recently been hospitalized at the state-run Manhattan Psychiatric Center after leaving Massachusetts in 2024. The state Office of Mental Health, which operates the center, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Aherne's next court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 17.

Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Reach him by email at emcuevas1@usatoday.com or on Signal at emcuevas.01.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mom stabbed while changing baby diaper in NYC Macy's, prosecutors say

Reporting by Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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