Central Islip man pleads guilty in brutal domestic violence stabbing attack

A Central Islip man admitted in Suffolk County Supreme Court that he stabbed his wife in the back as she slept, then strangled her until she lost consciousness before dragging her to the floor and fleeing, prosecutors said. Rodolfo Alvarez, 35, pleaded guilty on April 28 to attempted murder and related charges, and now faces up to 25 years in prison at sentencing.

The attack prosecutors described began inside the couple’s home on May 10, 2024, with a kitchen knife and escalated immediately into a life-threatening assault on a sleeping victim. Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney said Alvarez “strangled and stabbed his wife at a time when she was most vulnerable, and then hid for months to avoid accountability.”

The case took a second turn months later, when Alvarez was driving while intoxicated and struck his wife’s vehicle while she was on her way to work, bringing him back into contact with law enforcement after he had gone into hiding. That sequence makes the case a stark example of how a domestic assault can remain active long after the first attack, with danger continuing until police or another intervention closes the gap.

For victims in Suffolk County, help is available now. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911. The Suffolk County Police Department’s Domestic Violence and Elder Abuse Bureau can be reached at 631-854-7520; the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Domestic Violence Unit at 631-853-4138; Long Island Against Domestic Violence at 631-666-8833, a 24-hour hotline; The Retreat at 631-329-2200; and Victims Information Bureau Services at 631-360-3606. The police bureau says it conducts confidential domestic violence investigations and works with courts and outside agencies.