BY THE VILLAGE SUN | Police are still searching for a cyclist who they have linked to a string of three early-morning sexual attacks from last spring and summer. They’re asking for the public’s help in identifying him.
The suspect is wanted in a pair of assaults from last July, one on the Upper West and one in the East Village. In addition, police have linked the same man to an earlier incident, in May, in which he allegedly sexually attacked a female cyclist on the Manhattan Bridge.
Cops said that on May 15, around 4:30 a.m., a 26-year-old woman was biking across the Manhattan Bridge toward Brooklyn when a cyclist unknown to her approached her from the opposite direction. The man dismounted from his e-bike and grabbed the victim’s hair from behind. He flashed a knife and pulled the victim to the ground. He displayed his genitals to the victim before forcing her to perform a criminal sex act. He then fled on his bike toward Manhattan. The victim was taken by E.MS. ambulance to Woodhull Medical Center for a medical examination.
The earlier assaults happened in the early morning of July 16. In the first incident, a 23-year-old woman walking at Central Park West and 82nd Street around 4 a.m. when she was pulled down to the ground from behind, allegedly by the same suspect. After a struggle, the man digitally pentrated her genital area. He then fled on foot and was seen shortly afterward traveling southbound on Central Park West on an e-bike. The victim suffered cuts on her body and was taken by E.M.S. ambulance to Mount Sinai Morningside for a medical examination.
An hour later that same day, a 28-year-old woman was walking at Avenue A and Fourth Street when the same e-bike rider approached her, according to police. He jumped off his ride and grabbed her, saying that he had a knife as he pulled her to the ground. He displayed his genitals to the victim before forcing her to perform oral sex. The weapon was never displayed. He then fled eastbound on E. Fourth Street on the e-bike. The victim suffered cuts to her body and was taken by E.M.S. ambulance to Mount Sinai Beth Israel for a medical examination.
Police have released a sketch of the suspect and video from the East Village that was filmed before the incident, in which his face is hidden behind a mask.
Police are asking anyone with information on either incident to call the N.Y.P.D.’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Tips can also be submitted on the Crime Stoppers Web site at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on Twitter at @NYPDTips. Tips can result in cash rewards of up to $3,500. All tips are strictly confidential.
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