Kevin Coleman died after a fight outside the Langston Hughes Houses as police search for the other person involved.
BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A 48-year-old man was stabbed and killed Wednesday evening outside a Brownsville apartment complex, police said. The fight broke out just after 5:30 p.m. at the Langston Hughes Houses on Sutter Avenue, where officers found the victim with multiple stab wounds and rushed him to Brookdale Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Authorities identified the man as Kevin Coleman of East New York. Investigators said several 911 callers reported two men fighting and that at least one had a knife. Detectives were still reviewing video and canvassing for witnesses over the weekend as they worked to piece together what led to the confrontation. No arrests had been made as of Monday, and police had not released a description of the person who fled. The killing drew immediate attention in a neighborhood where residents say street disputes can escalate quickly outside public housing entrances.
Police said the fight unfolded in front of 301 Sutter Ave., part of the Langston Hughes Houses. When the first officers arrived, Coleman was on the ground with stab wounds to his torso. Emergency medical workers took him to One Brooklyn Health–Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center, where he died a short time later. The block remained taped off for hours as detectives searched the sidewalk and grassy edges of the property. A resident who watched the scene said she saw “blood on the cement” and a knife on the ground as investigators photographed evidence. “We heard yelling, then sirens everywhere,” the resident said.
Records show Coleman was 48 and lived roughly a mile from the complex. Police said they were looking into whether the two men knew each other and what sparked the fight. People who knew Coleman described him as a father who tried to stay present for his children. “Mad, I was real mad. Sad, angry, just confused mostly,” his daughter, Shadiara Coleman, said of learning about his death. A friend, Tameel Marshall, called him a “loveable person” and the “life of the party.” Investigators had not released additional information about the other person involved or whether any weapon recovered at the scene could be traced to either man.
The Langston Hughes Houses, a New York City Housing Authority development, sit in the 73rd Precinct, which has seen homicides fall this year compared with 2024, according to city data. The building also includes a community room frequented by seniors. Residents said they often see patrol cars on Sutter Avenue but worry about fights that start in courtyards and spill to the sidewalk. Several neighbors recalled seeing officers combing bushes and walkways for a black-handled knife after the killing and knocking on doors in nearby buildings for surveillance footage. For many, the crime scene reopened fears from earlier incidents in Brownsville that put police floodlights on corners into the night.
Detectives from the 73rd Precinct and housing bureau were leading the investigation, with the medical examiner expected to determine the exact cause and manner of death. Police said they were reviewing 911 calls and building cameras for a clearer timeline of the fight. If an arrest is made, charges would be presented in Brooklyn Criminal Court. Officials had not announced a public briefing as of Monday, and investigators said they would update the case when they identify a suspect. Funeral plans for Coleman had not been released.
By Friday, candles, posters and handwritten notes formed a small memorial near the spot where Coleman fell. “He was a great dad,” Marshall said, scratching a message onto a poster board by the fence line. Neighbors passing the memorial stopped to read the notes before heading into the lobby. One older resident balanced two grocery bags and shook her head at the taped-off patch of grass. “It’s just sad,” she said. “This is where we live.”
As of Monday morning, police said the investigation remained active and no arrests had been made. Detectives were expected to return to the Langston Hughes Houses this week to re-interview witnesses and pull additional camera angles from nearby buildings.
Author note: Last updated November 24, 2025.