Alexandra Witek GoFundMe raises over $42,000 as NYC teacher’s family found dead in suspected murder-suicide

An Upper West Side mom, Alexandra Witek, and her two young sons were found stabbed to death by her fiance and the children’s father, who then turned a knife on himself at their home in West 86th Street apartment building in NYC. In the wake of the incident, a GoFundMe created to assist Alexandra Witek’s family with funeral expenses has raised over $42,000.

Detailing the incident, the fundraising page said that on Monday, August 28, Alexandra Witek’s concerned family called officers to perform a welfare check after she was unresponsive over the phone and failed to turn up for prior commitments.

Upon arrival at around 3 p.m., officers reportedly found the two boys- 3-year-old Lucian and then-6-month-old Calvin - stabbed to death along with their 40-year-old mother, Alexandra Witek. Authorities suspect the family was killed by Witek’s 41-year-old partner, Edison Lopez, who was also found dead with self-inflicted stab wounds.

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Alexandra Witek was a former New York City teacher

The crowdfunding page that aimed to raise $80,000, revealed that Alexandra Witek, a Polish woman, was a former NYC teacher who shared her rich culture and teachings with her boys, who had vivid imaginations and an inquisitive spirit. The page said:

“Ola was an incredibly loving and devoted stay-at-home mom to her two young sons. Being a NYC school teacher, she instilled her knowledge and teachings on the growth of her boys who had blossoming imaginations and whose curiosity and sweetness to family and friends alike captured everyone’s hearts.”

Authorities said that Witek’s partner, Lopez, grew up in the building with his father, who was the building's superintendent. Lopez, who served as the building’s super, was expected to move out of the apartment after he had taken a new job in the Westchester County town of Hastings-on-Hudson.

While the motive for the devastating crime is unclear, people acquainted with the family told the New York Post that Lopez, whose last day as a super at the building was supposed to be on Friday, was stressed about being asked to move out of the apartment in two weeks. The unidentified acquaintance said:

“I saw him on Friday…he said he was leaving for another job and they were giving him like two weeks to get out. He was upset or something…like, worried. I have never seen him like that.”

Meanwhile, several people who knew the couple and their children said they were stunned at the tragedy. A neighbor told the New York Post that Witek and Lopez, who were both first-generation Americans, grew up on the same block and went to the same high school.

A distraught family friend, who said he had been a super on the same block for 35 years, told The Post that he felt staggered at the incident.

“This is crazy. I have known him since he was a little boy and she was a little girl. I have seen them together when they were young. I didn’t see this coming. I’ve never seen [Lopez] angry, never. I’ve never seen them fighting.”

The fundraising page described Alexandra Witek as a devoted stay-at-home mom who adored her two boys.