UPDATE: Suspect in NYC Sex Attack Spree in Police Custody: Sources
Police said they are looking for a man who attacked three women and a 14-year-old girl over a 1-hour period Tuesday morning on Staten Island.
The man began his onslaught before 6 a.m., when police said he groped a 50-year-old woman walking her dogs in Tompkinsville. He then attacked his other three victims -- ages 64, 42 and 14 -- while they were at at bus stops in the same neighborhood.
Law enforcement sources told News 4 the suspect told two of the women, "I'm going to rape you," amid the string of attacks that appalled locals such as Jeffrey Wiesemann-Irizarry.
"They should throw him in jail and chop his d--- off," he said. "Plain and simple."
Authorities said the first woman attacked was walking her dog about 5:45 a.m. when the man grabbed her around the neck, dragged her to the ground and stuck his hands down her pants. When the woman screamed, authorities said the man ran away.
Then, at 6:20 a.m., the man approached the 64-year-old as she stepped off an MTA bus at Henderson and Westbury avenues. Police said the man slapped the woman in the face and fled.
Eight minutes later, police said the attacker wrestled a 42-year-old woman to the ground as she waited for a bus at Castleton Avenue and Hunter Place. He again stuck his hand down the woman's pants, but he also punched her in the face when she screamed or help. The man again ran off, police said.
Finally, at 6:45 a.m., the man approached a 14-year-old girl as she waited at a bus stop at Castleton and Havenwood avenues. Police said he tackled her to the ground as well and this time tried to force her to perform a criminal sex act.
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Police said the girl bit the man, stopping the attack and prompting the suspect to hop in an SUV and drive away.
All three women and the girl were taken to the hospital with minor injuries ranging from swollen faces to a cut to the mouth.
One parent in the neighborhood, James Lee, said he and other families are coming up with a plan to keep their kids safe in case the man strikes again Wednesday.
"I told the parents, 'If your kids are going to walk to school, we got to organize something so they can walk together,'" he said.
Authorities canvassed the scene through the morning and were expected to continue into the afternoon. The suspect is described as being in his 20s and was last seen wearing gray sweatpants and a black track jacket.
Anyone with information on the attacker should call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
