New York City police have begun an all-out manhunt for a man accused of tying up a child and girl in Kissena Park, Queens, and sexually assaulting one of them.
The man reportedly told the two 13-year-olds to follow him into the woods of Flushing Park shortly after they left school on Thursday.
They declined, but he threatened them with “a large, machete-style knife,” police said in a press conference on Friday.
“As a father, a member of this department for many years, this incident is a parent’s nightmare,” said NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey.
Police Claim the Suspect Tied Children’s Wrists Using Shoelaces
The man forced the youngsters to accompany him to a remote section of the park, where he bound their wrists with shoelaces before sexually assaulting the girl, according to authorities. “The children were forced at knifepoint to follow him into a remote part of the park, where he tied the boy and girl’s hands together with a shoelace. “The perpetrator then sexually assaulted the 13-year-old girl,” stated NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny.
Police said a suspect snatched children’s smartphones.
According to police, the children, who are now reportedly recovering, returned to school following the event and informed a staff member of what had occurred.
“The perpetrator told both victims to wait at the location for 20 minutes while he fled the location on foot after robbing both children of their cellphones,” stated Kenny.
“These kids were doing what they were supposed to be doing — they were playing after school,” Emily Miles of the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault stated. “You see a coming together of the community around this family and this survivor in a way I think is actually going to be incredibly healing for them.”
NYPD is Hunting for Security Video of the Suspect
When authorities arrived at the location, they discovered a shoelace and a water bottle, which they believe the suspect left there.
Police have been hunting for CCTV footage of the suspect.
“We will not stop until we bring this monster to justice,” stated NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry.
“We will deploy a large number of officers to this area to alleviate concerns, and we will keep an eye on this park,” stated NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell.
The NYPD says it is looking through databases of registered sex offenders in the region, as well as robbery and sexual assault patterns in the precinct, to establish a lead.
Police Reveal a Sketch of the Suspect
The suspect was described as a man in his twenties with curly hair, braces on his teeth, and a tattoo of an animal with red eyes and a horn on his chest.
The NYPD has revealed sketches of the man’s tattoo.
Drone crews have now been dispatched throughout the park, and the NYPD plans to place small-scale cameras in the region.
“We need to think about long-term measures to keep people safe, and the surveillance cameras can do exactly that,” said Senator John Liu.
According to cbsnews Police offered a $10,000 reward for information that led to an arrest.