Last night around 9:30 p.m., a woman was fondled by a man on Prospect Avenue between 4th and 5th Avenues in Brooklyn. According to the Daily News, "The woman told police that the pervert sneaked up behind her as she left [the subway station]... She screamed when he grabbed at her breasts, prompting him to run away." While the police have not linked the incident to the series of sexual assaults on women in Park Slope, Sunset Park and Bay Ridge, a Daily News source said, "[The victim] said he looked like the guy from the posters."
However, there may be two or three suspects behind the ten attacks, which have taken place since April of this year. A reader told FIPS, "There were detectives going door to door on Prospect Avenue to see if anyone witnessed the crime. I talked to one of the detectives and they said they believe it is the same perpetrator or same in the string of perps. Same story--guy came up behind the woman and attacked her. She was screaming so loud the neighbors came outside to see what was going on, and the guy fled."
Volunteers, both walkers and cyclists, are offering to escort women home from subway stations amid community concerns that the police are not taking reports of sexual assaults seriously. The NYPD has denied those claims, saying uniformed and plain-clothes patrols are up. Still, female residents are worried and one store owner told the News, "I tell the customers just to scream if he grabs them."
Community Board 7 told Runnin' Scared that another safety meeting would be held on Tuesday.
