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Queens Parents Alarmed As Sexual Predator Targets Little Girls
By
John Del Signore
Published May 6, 2013
Modified May 6, 2013
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The suspect was last seen wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt with unknown white writing on the front, dark jeans and was carrying a purple back pack.
By
John Del Signore
Published May 6, 2013
Modified May 6, 2013
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The NYPD has released new video of a man suspected of sexually assaulting three young girls in broad daylight earlier this month. According to investigators, the suspect is "a male with a dark complexion, approximately in his 20's, 6'0", 160 lbs. with black hair." Police say the first incident occurred last Wednesday, when the suspect followed two sisters, ages 7 and 12, as they walked home from school in South Ozone Park. As they arrived at their front stoop, the suspect allegedly grabbed the younger girl's buttocks. Her sister screamed, and the suspect ran.
Several hours later, the suspect allegedly approached another seven-year-old girl in her driveway (she had gone to fetch her ball), "performed a criminal sexual act on the female and then fled the location on foot." On Thursday, a man exposed himself to a 13-year-old girl from a van and then trailed her for several blocks in South Ozone Park—NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said investigators are trying to determine whether the incident is connected to the other assaults.
Police have beefed up patrols in the area, and plastered "wanted" posters throughout the neighborhood. But the attacks, and the lack of arrests, have put parents in the neighborhood on edge. “We have to come home earlier just to make sure she gets home safely,” parent Jerry Bacchu tells CBS 2. A reward leading to an arrest and conviction has been increased to $12,000.
This morning City Council Speaker Christine Quinn held a press conference in the neighborhood, urging residents to come forward with any information that might help the investigation. "We simply cannot let the streets of Queens or anywhere else become places where girls and young woman are unsafe," Quinn told reporters. “If you are the individual who has committed these crimes, you should turn yourself in now. The full force of the NYPD and the full force of the people of Queens County are looking for you and you will be arrested."
Over the weekend, the NYPD released new surveillance footage of the suspect:
106 Precinct Sexual Assault/Forcible Touching from Gothamist on Vimeo.
Tagged
queens
sexual assault
south ozone park
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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