Man knifed to death in Wash. Hts.

A man was knifed to death during a possible drug deal gone wrong in Washington Heights, police sources said Saturday — the first of four people slain during a bloody night across the city.

Telmo Ruiz, 48, of Brooklyn, was arguing with a rival in the second-floor hallway of an Audubon Ave. apartment building near W. 191st St. around 6 p.m. Friday when the suspect pulled a knife and stabbed Ruiz in the neck and chest.

Ruiz fled the building and stumbled a block and a half before collapsing on the sidewalk by a storm drain.

“He looked dazed till you saw all the blood down his front,” said one witness who wished not to be named. “He was walking covered in blood. He just dropped. He went splat right on his face.

“A guy rolled him over and put pressure on the wound in his neck,” the witness said. “He looked like he was bleeding out into the sewer.”

Medics rushed Ruiz to New York Presbyterian Columbia University Irving Medical Center, but he could not be saved.

The suspect ran off and was still being sought by police Saturday. Investigators believe the two men were arguing over drugs, police sources said.

Ruiz was the first of four people killed in a 12-hour span overnight, cops said.

Almost five hours later, 21-year-old Shaiquan Wilson was fatally shot while watching a dice game near Randall Ave. deli in the Soundview section of the Bronx.

Around 1:30 a.m., Forest Byrd, 34, was shot to death inside a playground at the Eastchester Gardens public housing complex.

A fourth man was gunned down inside a Far Rockaway apartment building on Dix Ave. near Chandler St. around 6:30 a.m. Saturday.

As of July 26, cops have seen a 29% jump in homicides across the five boroughs, from 176 this time last year to 227, officials said.

The NYPD has also seen a 73% jump in shootings, from 431 to 745, officials said.