THE 6-HOUR TIMELINE: How a Bronx home invasion turned into a horrific Astoria Park discovery.
New York investigators are piecing together a nightmarish six-hour timeline that spanned across two boroughs, beginning with a gruesome domestic stabbing and culminating in a tragic discovery in Queens. Police initially responded to a scene around 12:30 a.m., finding 34-year-old Mary Kate Golding dead from multiple stab wounds to her back. Exactly six hours later, the multi-agency dragnet ended in Astoria Park, where her husband, 33-year-old Joseph Azzaretto, was found hanging from a tree.
The harrowing sequence of events has left law enforcement and community members confronting a swift, violent collapse of household safety.
Hour 0 (12:30 AM): The Phone Confession and the Crime Scene
The six-hour timeline began in the early morning hours when Joseph Azzaretto placed a frantic telephone call to a trusted family acquaintance. During the brief conversation, Azzaretto confessed to stabbing his wife following a heated domestic dispute.
Alarmed by the admission, the friend immediately dialed 911 dispatchers and rushed to the residence. Upon entering the home at approximately 12:30 a.m., responders and the acquaintance found Golding unresponsive on the floor with severe stab wounds to her back. Emergency medical personnel evaluated Golding at the scene, but she was pronounced dead shortly after arrival due to severe trauma.

Hours 1–2: Rescuing 11-Month-Old Nolan and Securing the Scene
Amidst the active crime scene, emergency responders made a crucial discovery: the couple’s 11-month-old son, Nolan, was located inside the residence unharmed. The defenseless infant had been left completely unattended in the apartment alongside his deceased mother after Azzaretto fled the property.
EMS personnel evaluated the child at the scene before transferring him for medical checks as a precautionary measure. Local child protective services and extended family members quickly stepped in to ensure the infant was safely cared for. Meanwhile, NYPD crime scene technicians cordoned off the block with yellow police tape to collect physical evidence and process the scene.
Hours 3–5: The Multi-Borough Dragnet
Following the stabbing, the NYPD launched a multi-agency search to track down Azzaretto. Detectives systematically cross-referenced neighborhood surveillance feeds, commercial camera logs, and mobile signal data across boroughs to map out his escape route.
While investigators pursued leads regarding his movements, neighbors in the surrounding community expressed disbelief and anger. Residents revealed that Azzaretto had exhibited long-term signs of emotional volatility and mental instability, frequently leaving aggressive, threatening notes over minor parking grievances along the block.
Hour 6 (6:30 AM): The Astoria Park Discovery
Approximately six hours after Golding’s body was discovered, police officers conducting a ground search of Astoria Park in Queens made a grim discovery. Azzaretto was found hanging from a tree inside the park grounds.
Paramedics pronounced Azzaretto dead at the scene, bringing the intense six-hour dragnet to a tragic conclusion.
Unsealing a Dark Family Legacy
The investigation into the six-hour tragedy unsealed a disturbing history of domestic violence within the Azzaretto family:
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The 2020 Shooting: In February 2020, Joseph Azzaretto’s younger brother, Nicholas Azzaretto, was arrested for fatally shooting their father, 58-year-old Frank Azzaretto, during a violent domestic dispute over a phone bill in Monroe County, Pennsylvania.
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Compounding Domestic Trauma: The revelation that both brothers were involved in separate, fatal domestic incidents six years apart has shocked local communities across New York and Pennsylvania.
As extended family members and community advocates organize long-term support for orphaned 11-month-old Nolan, neighbors continue to leave flowers and candles outside the residence, mourning a young mother whose life was cut short in a matter of hours.