The incident happened Monday at about 7:45 p.m. near Southern Boulevard and Leggett Avenue in the Longwood section.
According to the NYPD, the man followed the 13-year-old girl from the subway to her friend's apartment building, cornered her in the stairwell and tried to rape her. She fought him off and he fled.
Detectives obtained the video of the man, which can be seen in the player above.
The man is believed to be in his mid-20s, 5-feet 5-inches tall, with a medium build and last seen wearing a black baseball cap, black t-shirt, blue jeans and white sneakers.
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).