Police in New York City are hunting for a masked attacker who they say raped a 70-year-old woman at gunpoint in her apartment building in The Bronx last week.
According to the NYPD, the sexual assault took place at around 2am on July 27 in the Belmont neighborhood.
The elderly victim was entering her apartment building when she was approached from behind by a man wearing two plastic masks - a red one and a black one - on his face, police said.
Surveillance video from July 27 shows a rape suspect holding a silver handgun after attacking a 70-year-old woman in the Belmont section of The Bronx
Police say the man was wearing black and red plastic masks (pictured in his right hand) when he raped the elderly woman at gunpoint in the stairwell
The suspect fled on foot, leaving the victim suffering from injuries throughout her body
The suspect then pulled out a silver handgun and forced the woman into a stairwell, where he raped her at gunpoint, police said.
The 70-year-old victim suffered injuries throughout her body but did not immediately report the attack to the police.
The rape only came to light nearly a week later, when the woman went to BronxCare Health System Hospital for a checkup on Monday.
The rapist was described as being about 5 feet 8 inches tall, with a slim build. He was last seen wearing a black du-rag, a black hooded sweatshirt, a white T-shirt, blue jeans and black sneakers, and was carrying black and red plastic masks.
Anyone with any information is being asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
The rape was not reported until August 2, when the victim went to the hospital for a checkup. Pictured: the suspect is seen in the stairwell at the scene of the attack
The suspect is described as being 5 feet 8 inches tall, with a slim build. He was last seen wearing a black du-rag, a black sweatshirt, a white T-shirt, jeans and sneakers
Rapes in New York City were up 3.1 per cent so far this year, with 842 reported as of August 1, compared to 817 in the same period of 2020
The brazen attack comes amid skyrocketing crime rates in New York City.
NYPD crime data show that rapes are up 3.1 per cent so far this year, with 842 reported as of August 1, compared to 817 in the same period of 2020.
Other sex crimes are up 26.3 per cent to 2,719 this year, compared to 2,152 last year, according to NYPD statistics.
Shootings have spiked 15.8 per cent in 2021 compared to last year, with 900 shooting incidents in 2021 compared to 777 in 2020.
There are also 12 per cent more shooting victims this year, the data show, with 1,057 people falling prey to gun violence compared to 944 last year.
The biggest leap in crime rates is for hate crimes, which have surged by 103 per cent in the last year. The data come amid numerous random attacks on Asian Americans in the city in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.