Police are looking for a man wanted in connection with two attacks on the Lower East Side.
In the latest attack, which happened Thursday around 10 p.m., the suspect followed a 17-year-old girl into the elevator of an apartment building on Clinton and Madison streets, police said.
The suspect then covered his head with his hoodie and threatened the teen with a knife, forcing her out of the elevator and into a stairwell. He tried to sexually assault her but she fought back and the suspect ran off, police said.
Police believe the suspect is the same man who sexually assaulted a 19-year-old woman in January of 2010. He also followed that woman into an elevator inside a Lower East Side apartment building. She was hospitalized following the attack.
Janice Torres, who works in the area, said she was scared to know the suspect was still out there. "Knowing that now, it's frightening. Especially when I get off work, I have to look around, watch my back," she said.
A neighbor of the victim agrees. "What happens if you have to go out at night. You're by yourself. You don't know what could happen."
The suspect is described as being between the ages of 17-25, between 5’8” – 5’10” and heavy set.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crimestoppers at 800 577-TIPS.
