NYPD: Suspect Arrested In Central Park Attempted Rape, Robbery
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A suspect has been arrested in connection with an alleged attack on a woman in Central Park earlier this week.
Police said Forest Richardson is facing several charges including attempted rape, sex abuse, assault and robbery. The 26-year-old Bronx man was arrested around 2 a.m. Thursday, according to police.
Around 9:30 p.m. Monday, police said a 28-year-old was walking inside the park in the area of 107th Street and East Drive when a man approached her from behind.
He threw the woman to the ground, grabbed her cell phone from her pocket and tried to sexually assault her, police said. He then fled in an unknown direction.
The woman was taken to an area hospital.
Sources say police used the "Find My Phone" app, which led them to the Bronx and ultimately, his arrest, CBS2's Andrea Grymes reported.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce praised the Manhattan Special Victims detectives involved in the arrest on Twitter early Thursday morning, calling them "Truly the greatest detectives in the world!"
Manhattan Special Victims Detectives just made an arrest on the Att. Rape/Robbery in Central Pk. Truly the greatest Detectives in the World!
— Chief Kenneth Corey (@NYPDChiefOfDept) October 13, 2016
Sources said Richardson was undergoing a psych evaluation at Bellevue Hospital.
Sources also said he has more than 30 prior arrests, including a history of weapons possession, but he was not armed in the latest case, Grymes reported.
The NYPD has stepped up patrols in the park after a string of crimes over the past month. There have been four other recent robberies late at night. At this point, police said Richardson is only connected to this case.