Woman Fights off Attempted Rapist in the Bronx; Police Release Video of Suspect

What to Know

  • A man tried to rape a 29-year-old woman as she was heading home in the Bronx this week
  • Police say the man put her in a chokehold, but she fought back and ultimately scared him off
  • Police released surveillance video of a suspect on Thursday

Police are searching for a man seen on newly released surveillance video who they say put a woman in a chokehold and tried to rape her before she fought him off. 

The 29-year-old woman was walking into her residence on Watson Avenue in the Soundview neighborhood of the Bronx at about 1 a.m. on Tuesday when the man attacked.

Police say the 20-something-year-old man grabbed the woman from behind and put her in a chokehold. The woman fought back and both of them fell to the ground during a struggle.

The man then punched the woman in her face and tried to rape her, according to police. The woman began kicking him and he ran off.

The woman was taken to an area hospital. 

She told NBC 4 New York from her home Friday, "Through the grace of God, I managed to fight this person off, and this person saw that because I wasn't giving up easily and I wasn't letting myself get defeated, they ran off like the coward that they are. 

"He thought that I was like any other person that just wouldn't fight back and let myself get taken away, and it's not gonna happen," she said. "It's not gonna happen to me, and it's not gonna happen to anybody else." 

The Bronx Special Victim’s Squad is investigating. The NYPD asks anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.

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