Investigators say the 23-year-old woman was inside the room last Wednesday at a residential building near 162nd Street and Jamaica Avenue in Jamaica.
She was doing her family's laundry when police say the man walked in, exposed himself and then approached the woman. He cornered her in the back and demanded the woman perform a sex act on him.
When the woman screamed, he turned around and still exposed, walked out of the room.
Unlike laundry rooms in many buildings, this one was not in the basement, allowing for an easy getaway.
But because it is on the first floor next to several apartments, the screams could be heard in the hallway and may have frightened the man off.
Some say residents allow people in the building who don't live there. "We have to look out for each other in here and stop letting strangers in," said one resident.
The NYPD describes the suspect as a black male, in his twenties, approximately six feet, last seen wearing all black, face mask, carrying a black book bag and headset.
Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.
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