Murder suspect dies of possible allergic reaction on Rikers Island, marking the 15th death in New York City jails this year.
A man detained at Rikers Island, implicated in the beating death of his roommate at a Bronx drug treatment facility, died on Monday morning, marking the 15th death linked to the city’s jail system this year. Kyron Randall, 33, experienced a medical crisis at the George R. Vierno Center shortly after midnight and was transported to Elmhurst Hospital, where he succumbed to his condition before 1 a.m. Officials suspect an allergic reaction as the cause of death.
Randall’s legal troubles began earlier in 2023 when he was arrested for assaulting Christopher Ames at the BronxCare Life Recovery Center, located on Fulton Avenue in Morrisania. Reports indicate that Randall attacked Ames while he was asleep. Following Ames’s death 11 days later, the charge against Randall was escalated to murder. Ames sustained several skull fractures due to the violent encounter, though the precise motive for the attack remains unclear.
Court documents reveal that following his arrest, a judge ordered Randall to be held in a psychiatric facility in March 2024. He spent approximately four months there before being transferred to Rikers Island in July 2024. Prior to this incident, Randall had a previous arrest in 2016 for arson in a New York City Housing Authority development, for which he had served a year in prison after pleading guilty to reckless endangerment.
His death at the Vierno Center is particularly notable as it marks the fourth fatality at that facility in 2025, outpacing any other jail in the city. In contrast, three individuals died at the Otis Bantum Correctional Center, while no other institutions within the city’s jail system reported more than two fatalities this year.
The total of 15 deaths in city jails in 2025 is the highest recorded since 2022, the initial year of Mayor Eric Adams’s administration, during which there were 19 deaths. Commissioner Lynelle Maginley-Liddie of the Department of Correction expressed condolences regarding Randall’s passing and emphasized the utmost importance of a thorough investigation into the incident.
Advocacy groups, such as Freedom Agenda, have raised alarms over the rising death toll within the jail system, highlighting the ongoing concerns surrounding the treatment of detainees. Activists argue that this trend underscores the urgent need for reforms, particularly as the city grapples with the complexities of its correctional system. As Mayor Adams’s administration approaches critical transitions, calls for actionable change continue to resonate within the community. The next court appearance for Randall had been scheduled for February 3.
