Who is Brian Dowling? Charges explored as suspect is arrested over Ryan Carson stabbing

Brian Dowling, an 18-year-old with a history of assault, was arrested on Thursday, October 5, 2023, in connection to the stabbing death of NYC activist Ryan Carson. The arrest came a day after police released the image of the suspect captured from the surveillance video of the attack, describing him as a teenager enrolled in a learn-to-work program at a school in the Clinton Hill neighborhood.

Ryan Carson, a 32-year-old activist and poet, was fatally stabbed in an unprovoked attack early Monday morning on October 2, as he and his girlfriend were returning from a wedding on Long Island. The incident that was caught on a surveillance video showed the moment the 32-year-old was stabbed in front of his girlfriend in Bedford-Stuyvesant at about 4 a.m. while the couple were waiting for a bus.

Dowling was pictured being escorted by the police on Thursday when cops busted him at his home on Lafayette Avenue near Malcolm X Boulevard. The suspect’s home was reportedly located just down the block from where Ryan Carson was stabbed to death while protecting his girlfriend from a seemingly random attack.

The troubling surveillance video showed an agitated suspect kicking and damaging mopeds and scooters that were parked on the sidewalk before he came across Ryan Carson and his girlfriend at the bus stop.

Carson, who was seen shielding his girlfriend from the unhinged man, got into a scuffle after the suspect yelled “What the f**k are you looking at?, adding, “I’ll kill you.” The suspect then carried out the threat when he pulled out a knife and stabbed Carson three times.

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What we know about Brian Dowling the suspect arrested for Ryan Carson's murder

While the motive for the Killing was unclear, cops believe the suspect, Brian Dowling, who lived down the street from the crime scene, attacked Ryan Carson at random. Brian Dowling is charged with one count each of murder and criminal possession of a weapon.

Police said that the suspect was fighting with a woman – identified by friends as his twin sister, Brianna -- before he was captured on video kicking the mopeds. According to the New York Post, the teen, who is enrolled in a learn-to-work program in Clinton Hill, was issued three summonses in 2022, including two for disorderly behaviour.

The suspect's aunt told multiple websites that Brian Dowling was mentally unstable and had a history of assaulting and attacking his girlfriend and family members. Dowling’s aunt cited an incident in July where he smashed objects at his girlfriend's apartment after they had a fight.

However, a person who identified himself as a friend of the suspect’s father, Brian Dowling Sr, was stunned about the teen’s arrest in connection to the murder, as the teen did not exhibit troubling behavior in the past. Eric Riddick, 58, told the New York Post that Dowling, who graduated from high school this past spring, had no issues in the past that indicated he was capable of the heinous act.

“I mean there were really no issues…where you can go back and check if there were any kind of problems with him in the past.”

Brian Dowling reportedly also recently worked in construction and was employed in restaurants.

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Brian Dowling (Image via Scallywag and Vagabond/Facebook)

Shortly after his arrest, while being escorted by the police to the patrol vehicle, Brian Dowling was photographed with tears streaming down his face. The post, citing sources, said police found the dark “Champion” sweatshirt believed to have been worn by the killer in the video of the attack at the suspect’s home along with a knife.

Meanwhile, as the news of Ryan Carson's death made national headlines, a volley of social media posts paid tribute to the environment activist who served as a campaign manager at the New York Public Interest Research Group, a non-partisan political organization, focusing on waste policy.