Heartbreaking Photos Show New Mum, 32, With Baby Days Before She Was Killed in Times Square

Heartbreaking family photos have emerged showing Erin Piacenti enjoying precious moments with her husband and five-month-old daughter — just days before her life was tragically cut short in a random Times Square attack.

The 32-year-old Bank of America executive had only just returned to work following maternity leave when she was killed in Manhattan.

For Erin, becoming a mother had been one of the greatest joys of her life. Her family said her lifelong ambition was to have children, and little Madison had brought her “the greatest possible joy.”

Just four days before her death, Erin shared a touching photograph of herself smiling as she held her baby daughter alongside her husband, Frank.

The couple had married two years earlier and had recently bought their dream home in Chester, New Jersey, where they were looking forward to building a life together with their new daughter.

A Life Centered Around Family

Photos released by Erin’s loved ones show a young family celebrating happier moments — from their wedding and family gatherings to Madison’s christening and a boating trip with friends.

Her relatives said those memories better represented who Erin was than the tragic circumstances surrounding her death.

“Erin’s life was defined not by the circumstances of her death, but instead by the way she lived,” her family said in a tribute.

They described her as a devoted daughter and sister, a loyal friend, a loving partner and, most recently, an “incredibly loving mother.”

Erin was also highly accomplished professionally.

She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and Fordham University School of Law before building a career that eventually saw her become a vice president at Bank of America.

She had been working as a VP at the bank for around 18 months.

But to those who knew her, her professional achievements were only one part of her story.

A Random Attack in Times Square

Police said Erin was among two strangers attacked in Times Square by Pamela Cisneros, 49, a Queens resident who had reportedly struggled with mental illness.

Authorities said the incident did not appear to be terror-related and that there was no clear motive for the attack.

Cisneros allegedly wounded 68-year-old Tak Kam near West 41st Street and Seventh Avenue before moving toward Erin and attacking her.

Police later confronted the suspect as she fled toward an NYPD substation.

According to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, Cisneros refused officers’ commands to drop the knives and threatened them before police shot her.

The incident initially prompted reports of a possible knifepoint robbery, but investigators later said they did not believe there was a clear motive.

A Family’s Future Changed in an Instant

Erin and Frank had recently celebrated their second wedding anniversary and returned from a family road trip.

They were preparing to begin a new chapter of their lives with their baby daughter.

Instead, that future disappeared in an instant.

Her death has also deeply affected her colleagues at Bank of America.

One colleague who worked on the same floor described Erin as “a beautiful young lady” who was “very sharp,” adding that staff were grieving together.

A GoFundMe campaign has been established to support Madison and help secure her future. It had raised nearly $500,000 by Thursday.

For Erin’s family, the heartbreaking photographs now serve as a reminder of the life she cherished most — the husband she loved, the daughter she had waited for, and the family future she had only just begun building.