Miami steakhouse manager claims self-defense in mother’s stabbing death

A Miami steakhouse manager allegedly emerged from his luxury apartment covered in blood and clutching a knife before telling police he had acted in self-defense after his mother was found stabbed to death inside.

Stefano Eduardo Cremasco-Cicero, 36, told officers, “I was defending myself,” after Miami police were called to the Brickell high-rise early Friday, according to an arrest report obtained by WPLG.

Cremasco-Cicero is charged with second-degree murder with a weapon, Miami-Dade County jail records show.

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Officers were dispatched at about 4:47 a.m. for an “unknown request for police assistance,” according to the outlet.

Officers found Cremasco-Cicero in the lobby with blood on his hands, clothing and shoes, the outlet reported.

He allegedly directed officers upstairs to the apartment.

Inside the apartment, police found his mother lying behind the front door with multiple apparent stab wounds, according to WPLG. Miami Fire Rescue pronounced her dead shortly after 5 a.m.

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Authorities have not publicly identified the woman or disclosed her age. Police said she was visiting from Mexico and staying with her son.

The unusual chain of events began when a food delivery driver arrived at the building and encountered Cremasco-Cicero in the lobby, according to the report.

He allegedly opened the door for the driver and asked her to call 911. Cremasco-Cicero ultimately placed the call himself but handed the phone to the woman so she could give the dispatcher the building information, WPLG reported.

The driver noticed blood on him as they waited for police, according to the outlet. When she tried to return his phone, he allegedly refused to take it, and she later handed it to responding officers.

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Investigators then turned to surveillance video and building access records to piece together what happened in the hours before police arrived.

Surveillance video showed Cremasco-Cicero and his mother returning to the building together at about 10:32 p.m. Thursday, according to WPLG. They were reportedly alone in the elevator.

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At about 4:26 a.m., surveillance video allegedly captured Cremasco-Cicero entering an elevator wearing a white shirt, khaki pants and white shoes that appeared to be covered in blood. Police said he was carrying a knife.

He allegedly dropped the knife after stepping out of the elevator, picked it back up and rode another elevator upstairs, according to the report.

Investigators said Cremasco-Cicero later reappeared in a different, long-sleeved blue shirt and walked out of the building while using his phone. He returned minutes later and sat on a couch in the lobby before flagging down the delivery driver, WPLG reported.

Police said Cremasco-Cicero had small cuts on his hands and blood residue on his body and clothing. Crime scene investigators photographed him and collected his clothes, according to the outlet.

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After obtaining a search warrant, homicide detectives allegedly recovered several kitchen knives with blood on them, blood-spattered shirts, broken glass and a broken wine bottle from the apartment, WPLG reported.

Cremasco-Cicero’s wife told detectives she was in France attending a wedding when the killing happened, according to the report. She said her husband and his mother had not been close since his parents divorced and that he had recently been under stress while preparing to open a restaurant in Coconut Grove.

The Miami Herald identified Cremasco-Cicero as the U.S. operating manager of the high-end 1986 Steakhouse in Miami.

The arrest report identified Cremasco-Cicero as a Miami resident through an investor visa, according to WPLG.

Miami-Dade Corrections records reviewed by Fox News Digital show Cremasco-Cicero was booked Friday night and is being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. The records list no bond, a domestic-violence designation and a hold for immigration authorities.

The jail record does not provide additional details about the immigration hold.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed to Fox News Digital that Cremasco-Cicero is an illegal immigrant.

“On August 5, 2026, ICE lodged a detainer for Stefano Eduardo Cremasco Cicero, a criminal illegal alien from Mexico, charged with homicide,” the DHS spokesperson said. “We are calling on Florida to honor our detainer. His claims will be heard by an immigration judge and he will receive due process. This administration will not ignore the rule of law.”

“Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, if you break the law, you will face the consequences,” the spokesperson added. “Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S.”

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A motive for the killing remains unclear.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Miami Police Department, the Miami-Dade Clerk of Courts and 1986 Steakhouse for additional information.