A tourist from California was changing her baby in a bathroom at Macy’s Herald Square when she was stabbed by a crazed homeless woman during the height of the holiday season, sources told The Post.
The 38-year-old mom was in the iconic Midtown store’s seventh-floor bathroom with her 10-month-old daughter when she was repeatedly knifed Thursday afternoon in an vicious attack that left shoppers on edge.
The alleged assailant – Kerri Aherne, 43 – used a kitchen-type knife as she hacked the tourist’s back and right arm, sources said.
Kerri Aherne was arrested and charged with attempted murder for the alleged attack at Macy’s during the busy holiday season. Obtained by NY Post
Despite being riddled with knife wounds over her back and arm, the mother miraculously was released from the hospital Friday.
“She is better,” her husband told The Post, declining to comment further.
Aherne was arrested on attempted murder and acting in a manner injurious to a child charges, but had yet to appear in court as of Friday evening.
The alleged knife-wielding maniac is homeless and has no history of arrests in the Big Apple, police said.
But court records from Aherne’s home state of Massachusetts show she has long struggled with mental illness.
The Tewksbury native abruptly stopped posting on her Facebook account – which features anti-Trump comments, movie clips and incoherent rants – in 2018.
A 38-year-old mom visiting from California was repeatedly stabbed by a homeless woman inside a bathroom at Macy’s Herald Square while changing her baby, sources say. Desheania Andrews for Ny Post
“Going a little insane,” one of her last posts prophetically states, along with a still from a Michael Jackson video.
Aherne was deemed an incapacitated person in 2019, with her mother and sister appointed as her guardians, the records show.
She was placed on a court-ordered treatment plan to keep her taking Prolixin, an antipsychotic medication used to treat schizophrenia, according to the records.
Her mother and sister didn’t return requests for comment.
How and when Aherne came to New York City is unclear, but she apparently crossed paths with the tourist inside the flagship Macy’s around 3:10 p.m., as it was packed with holiday shoppers.
The victim was taken to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition. James Keivom
The victim – who works as a civilian for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, where her husband is a deputy – had been shopping with her family when she went into the bathroom to change her baby, sources said.
Aherne allegedly attacked the mother in the bathroom, stabbing her back, shoulder and arm, police and sources said.
The mom was rushed to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition, while Aherne was taken into custody.
The seventh-floor bathroom showed no sign of violence the day after the attack – and many shoppers were stunned to find out what happened.
Some questioned why Macy’s hadn’t posted security guards, especially because the Toys “R” Us is on the seventh floor.
“This happened yesterday? We were in Macy’s yesterday, on the seventh floor,” said Elizabeth, 40, who visited from South Carolina for her son’s 10th birthday.
“It’s such a tourist location. I know it’s a store but it’s become quite a staple of people coming to celebrate Christmas in New York… I would expect that on the street not necessarily inside a department store.”
A similar random assault did unfold outside Macy’s on Nov. 19, when a woman pummeled a cancer survivor over the head.
Records from her home state of Massachusetts show Aherne was deemed an incapacitated person in 2019. AFP via Getty Images
That attacker remains on the loose, but police believe the incident is unrelated to the bathroom stabbing, sources said.
Felony and misdemeanor assaults in the Midtown South Precinct, which covers Macy’s, have both increased by roughly 2% and 9%, respectively, this year compared to 2024, NYPD crime data shows.
Shoppers at Macy’s on Friday, a day after the bathroom stabbing, felt the iconic store could use more security.
“You’d think they have any security by the bathroom,” said Laura P., 43, who was with her two girls. “At least at the entrance to see who’s coming in and out.
“Going to the bathroom is not supposed to be a scary place.”
Maureen Thomas, who has four kids and works near Midtown, acknowledged it’d be difficult to keep ruffians out.
“That’s crazy though. She was just changing her baby,” she said.
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“They should have security all over and they probably do, but it’s probably security to check if you’re stealing their clothes. But they should have, to check more humanity — by the bathrooms and stuff.”
A Macy’s spokesperson said the store has taken several steps to reinforce safety, including expanding its NYPD paid detail coverage and heightening its “asset protection” for better real-time awareness and response.
“We are deeply saddened about the incident that took place today as the safety of our customers and colleagues is our top priority,” a Macy’s spokesperson said in a statement.
– Additional reporting by Emily Crane and Khristina Narizhnaya