The New York Police Department is searching for a man who broke into a Brooklyn apartment in the early hours of Aug. 30, choked and groped a 71-year-old woman and fled carrying only the victim’s pajama pants, authorities said.
Police said the attack occurred about 2:15 a.m. at a residence on Berriman Street near Liberty Avenue in the Cypress Hills neighborhood. The woman was asleep when an intruder entered the apartment through a kitchen window, according to the NYPD. Investigators said the suspect choked the woman, touched her inappropriately and then ran from the scene.
After the assault, the suspect was seen fleeing on foot, heading south on Atkins Avenue, police said. The victim was taken to Kings County Hospital Center and was listed in stable condition. The NYPD released photos and video of a man walking on a sidewalk wearing a dark-colored T-shirt, gray sweatpants and black-and-white sneakers. As of Monday, authorities said the suspect had not been apprehended.
Detectives asked anyone with information to contact the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or, for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Tips can also be submitted online at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/ or via X at @NYPDTips.
The NYPD’s release of surveillance images is part of an ongoing investigation into the incident. Police did not provide information about a possible motive or indicate whether there were prior reports of similar incidents at the address. Investigators are canvassing the area and reviewing footage to establish the suspect’s movements before and after the intrusion.
The case remains under investigation by local detectives. Authorities urged residents with security cameras in the area to review recordings from the early-morning hours of Aug. 30 and to contact investigators if they captured relevant footage. No arrests had been reported in connection with the incident as of the latest update from police.