An Ecuadorian immigrant has been detained after a 13-year-old girl was sexually assaulted in a secluded area of a sprawling park in Queens, sources said.
The migrant, who sources say is believed to have arrived in 2021, was detained by police in the early hours of Tuesday morning, five days after a girl and a 13-year-old boy were held at knifepoint with a “machete-type” blade in a disturbing attack that took place in broad daylight inside Quicena Park on Thursday afternoon.
The arrest came after the NYPD released images and video footage of the young man they were searching for on Monday night and also offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.
Other residents at the same shelter in Queens saw the wanted flyer, recognized him and called police.
Authorities say the suspect approached two juveniles and took them to a secluded area of a Queens park.
The man then tied the girls’ wrists with shoelaces and sexually abused them.
Police say the monster then took their cellphones and ordered them to remain there for 20 minutes after fleeing.
After the assault, the traumatized children fled to a nearby school where they alerted staff, who then called 911.
The daring daylight attack sparked a massive manhunt for the pervert and led to a heavy police presence in the park for several days as local residents waited nervously.
“We’ve all been nervous since we heard the news because we have young children playing here and it happened during the day,” his father, Alankar Ngar, told The Post over the weekend.
The park is usually bustling with children and students from nearby schools, including the two victims.
The NYPD has assigned more than 60 investigators to the search in what is known as an “all hands on deck” operation.
“want [the community] “Please be assured that we will spare no expense. We will use every investigative tool at our disposal and again ask for the community’s cooperation in bringing closure for these young children and this family,” NYPD Commissioner Jeffrey Madeley said during a briefing on the case on Friday.
Charges against the suspects are pending.
