A 20-year-old Brooklyn man has been charged with groping 10 women in the borough, many of them in Williamsburg, after victims connected on social media and began sharing their stories, police say.
Joshua Griffith was charged Friday with multiple counts of sex abuse, forcible touching and public lewdness in connection with the series of gropings over the last month. Griffith is expected to be charged in an 11th case once that woman is able to go to a stationhouse for a line-up.
In half a dozen of the cases, he allegedly exposed himself to the women and touched them. In one case, he allegedly lifted up a woman's skirt.
It wasn't immediately clear when Griffith would be arraigned, nor was it known if he had an attorney.
The arrest was spurred by several Brooklyn women who say they realized they were groped on the street by the same man when they began sharing their stories and connecting with each other on social media.
Lesley Melincoff said her friend was groped May 29 in Williamsburg, and she decided to go online and alert their neighbors. She shared a message on an email group for parents in the neighborhood, and the response was immediate.
"I know I've spoken to nine women who have had either direct contact with this guy or have experiences," she said. "One woman's babysitter relayed a similar experience."
One woman told NBC 4 New York she was jogging near the intersection of Skillman and Manhattan avenues in Williamsburg on May 22 when a stranger slapped her on the behind.
"I know crazy things happen in this city but I've never had anyone touch me that way, and it was just super creepy and inappropriate, and I was definitely angry," the woman, who asked not to be identified out of concern for her safety, told NBC 4 New York.
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Another alleged victim said, "As soon as I reported it, the police said they had other instances of this happening in the neighborhood."
Melincoff said eight or nine similar stories emerged within 12 hours.
"It was a really incredible testament to the power of sharing this information on social media and sharing with your neighbors," she said.
