E'Dena Hines, the step-granddaughter of Morgan Freeman was found stabbed to death early Sunday morning in Manhattan police said, according to CNN. The 33-year-old, who had multiple stab wounds in her torso, was rushed to Harlem Hospital where she was pronounced dead, said the New York Police Department.
Police responded to a 911 call around 3 a.m. Sunday morning. When officers arrived at the scene in the Washington Heights section of New York City, they found Hines bleeding to death on the street. A 30-year-old man, believed to be her boyfriend, was found standing over her lifeless body, according to the New York Daily News. The man was taken into custody and a knife was recovered at the scene, said authorities.
The boyfriend apparently stabbed Hines as an exorcism, reported the New York Post. "'Get out, devils! I cast you out, devils! In the name of Jesus Christ, I cast you out!'" the suspect screamed, according to George Hudacko, who witnessed the attack from his window and called 911.
"The girl was making a lot of noise, screaming," said Hudacko of the victim. "I saw something sparkly going up and down.... I called 911. I was begging them to come."
Hines was the granddaughter of Freeman's first wife, Jeanette Adair Bradshaw. The couple divorced in 1979, after 12 years of marriage, and he always referred to Hines as his granddaughter.
"I want to acknowledge the tremendous outpouring of love and support my family has received regarding the tragic and senseless passing of my granddaughter Edena Hines," the actor wrote on his Facebook page. "Thank you from the bottom of my heart."
