Elderly NYC couple tortured, killed after letting stranger charge phone: police

New York City police are urging residents to be on alert for a man suspected of torturing an elderly Queens couple for hours before killing them and setting their home on fire – all under the guise of needing to come inside to charge his phone. 

The NYPD has released new photos of 42-year-old Jamel McGriff, an ex-con with a decades-long rap sheet, as police warn he is considered armed and dangerous. 

The victims have been identified as Frank and Maureen Olton, 76 and 77.

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The NYPD is asking for the public’s help in locating Jamel McGriff, an ex-con wanted for allegedly torturing and killing an elderly Queens couple.  (NYPD)

Police say surveillance video shows McGriff approaching a home around 10 a.m. and asking the resident if he could come inside to charge his phone, which the homeowner declined. 

McGriff proceeded to walk to the Oltons’ home, where Frank initially let him into the backyard before both men were seen entering the house. 

Surveillance footage captured McGriff exiting the home around five hours later at 3 p.m., carrying two bags and walking eastbound on 87th Drive. Shortly after, the victims’ son, an active-duty FDNY EMT, received a security alert that his parents’ house was on fire and called 911. 

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The NYPD is asking for the public’s help in locating Jamel McGriff, an ex-con wanted for allegedly torturing and killing an elderly Queens couple.  (NYPD)

“Once the flames were under control, two victims were found deceased inside the home – 76-year-old Frank Olton, who was the one seen on video interacting with the suspect outside, and Mr. Olton’s wife, 77-year-old Maureen Olton,” NYPD Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. “Mr. Olton was found in the basement tied to a pole with multiple stab wounds; Mrs. Olton was found on the first floor severely burned.”

Tisch said McGriff’s “modus operandi” includes distraction robbery, in which a suspect talks their way into a victim’s residence before committing a crime. 

“Do not allow anyone you don’t know or who you are not expecting into your home,” Tisch added. 

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This still image taken from security video shows the man police are seeking in connection with a double-homicide arson attack near New York’s Belmont Park racetrack.  (NYPD)

McGriff has a lengthy criminal history spanning decades, including a 16-year-long prison sentence stemming from a 2006 robbery conviction in which he was out on parole, FOX 5 reported. He is also wanted for two recent robberies – one at a Harlem GameStop in July and another at a Manhattan Verizon store, where he was reportedly fought off by a store clerk who noticed he was carrying a fake gun, police said. 

Last year, McGriff also failed to register as a sex offender, a parole violation, police said. 

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McGriff was last spotted pawning two cellphones in the Bronx on Tuesday, police said. He was also seen on surveillance video walking down a sidewalk in Queens wearing a black hat, black jacket, blue jeans and black sneakers while carrying a backpack and paper bag. 

Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS, share tips online at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X @NYPDTips.

Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.