Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Police Release Video, Sketch of Hamilton Heights Rapist
By
Jen Chung
Published Apr 17, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Apr 17, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Yesterday, the NYPD released video of the man who raped and tortured a Columbia graduate student in her Hamilton Heights apartment for hours on Friday and Saturday. The assailant used her ATM card at a bodega on 141st Street and St. Nicholas Avenue. A worker there told the News, "He's not human." The police also released a sketch of the attacker, who is described as a black man, around 180 pounds and 6'1", bald with a goatee; he also has a scar on his abdomen and a gold tooth.
The Post gives more detail about the brutal attack: Apparently the attacker rushed her when she opened the door to her apartment Friday and beat her. Then he tied her to a futon with coaxial cable, beating and sexually assaulting her. He poured boiling water on her in an attempt to remove DNA evidence and set the futon on fire Saturday afternoon before leaving. But the fire "melted the plastic covering of the coaxial cable" and she was able to escape. A building resident tells the News that the woman "keeps blaming herself" for letting him in.
Fellow students at Columbia's School of Journalism spoke out about the attack. Leonardo Blair told the News, "I'm shocked and I'm angry. I'd kill him, seriously." Another student, Melissa Castro, said, "She's a strong woman. It's all too painful. I'm shocked this happened." And Hamilton Heights residents were worried and upset as well: City College student Juan He who lives in the same building told the Columbia Spectator, "I was on my way back from shopping at Pathmark when I saw the fire on the fifth floor around 4 o'clock. Firefighters came and broke it up after 10 minutes. Right now I'm kind of scared."
A resident says that the 23-year-old victim's parents were worried about her safety in Hamilton Heights and asked neighbors about the area. The police say they were going over the crime scene with a fine-tooth comb.
There is a Take Back the Night event at Barnard on Thursday night and an event from the NYC Alliance Against Sexual Assault in Union Square on Friday night.
Top image - surveillance footage of attacker; lower photograph from Bwog of candles at the Columbia Journalism school
Tagged
bodega
city
city college
college
Columbia Spectator
crime
events
fire
hamilton heights
heights
journalism
media
news
Nicholas Avenue
night
nyc
nypd
police
safety
Shopping
Take Back
the post
union square
video
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Retired NYPD detective charged in George Washington Bridge killing out on $1M bail
Victor Romero, who retired from the police department in 2001
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Oct 25, 2026 at 10:25 a.m. ET
Suicides decline in NYC, but inequities persist across groups
New data shows suicide taking an outsize toll among Latino New Yorkers, even as overall deaths fell.
By
Jill Webb
News
Suicides decline in NYC, but inequities persist across groups
New data shows suicide taking an outsize toll among Latino New Yorkers, even as overall deaths fell.
By
Jill Webb
Cuts to rural healthcare become key issue for upstate votes in race for NY governor
By
Samuel King
NY Archdiocese will soon settle $800M clergy sexual abuse claims
By
Arya Sundaram
Chinatown residents file lawsuit against after-hours construction on new 'mega jail'
By
Arya Sundaram
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .