Reward offered after 13-year-old girl sexually assaulted inside Flushing park
FLUSHING, Queens (WABC) -- New York City police are offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of a man who sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl in a secluded part of Kissena Park in Queens, in what a police official called "a parent's nightmare."
The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. on Thursday in the Flushing park.
Police say two schoolmates, a 13-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy, were in the park near Colden Street and Kalmia Avenue when they were approached by a man who took out a "large machete-style knife" and forced them into the woods.
The individual then took the cellphones of both victims, tied the boy and girl's wrist together with a shoelace and sexually assaulted the female victim before fleeing.
The teens were taken to the hospital in stable condition after they returned to school to report what happened to them.
Investigators recovered the shoelace used to tie the children's hands together, along with a water bottle the rapist left behind.
"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.
Authorities described the suspect they are looking for as a man in his 20s, 5'5'', with curly hair, wearing a black shirt, black pants, red sneakers and a green backpack. He appeared to have dental braces and a large tattoo on his chest depicting either a boar or a pig.
"The entire police department is focused on getting justice for this young survivor," NYPD Chief of Detectives Joe Kenny said.
The news of what happened has rattled students and parents.
And people in this generally quiet neighborhood are horrified to see Kissena Park become a crime scene.
"This neighborhood is very safe. It's a good community," one resident told Eyewitness News. "And seeing, hearing this is actually... it's not... it's not a good reputation for the community, you know. And people are going to be very worried because of what's going on."
Anyone with information in regard 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 https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/, on X @NYPDTips.
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