Police are searching for a man who brutally attacked and attempted to rape a woman in Central Park early Saturday morning — as crime in the iconic Big Apple attraction continues to surge.
A 38-year-old woman was near 85 East Drive in the northern end of the park around 5:10 a.m. Saturday when she was approached by an unknown attacker, the NYPD said.
The assailant “pushed the victim over a metal fence, punched her in the face multiple times, and attempted to rape her,” police said.
He then fled the scene on a bicycle, riding out of the park going north on 5th Ave., police added.
Surveillance footage shows the suspect wearing a hoodie and a backward baseball cap on a bicycle. Images shared by the NYPD also appear to show the suspect wearing a large food delivery bag on his back.
The victim was taken by EMS to the hospital where she is in stable condition.
The vicious attack comes as crime is up 13% in Central Park year-to-day and up 34% compared with two years ago, according to NYPD data.
Two rapes have been reported to Central Park precinct cops so far this year — even with the same period of 2023. Robberies, however, have more than doubled, with 37 reported so far this year. Assaults are also up.
Locals who visit the park daily were shaken but not surprised by the attempted assault, telling The Post that seedy individuals inhabit the park at nighttime in that area.
“I would not walk at those hours, early in the morning or late at night [or] without my dog because I don’t feel safe,” Julissa Suarez, 52, told The Post while walking her American bulldog, Melech.
“There’s a lot of drug addicts that come in these woods,” Suarez said. “So they come in here and they have sex in exchange for drugs. They’re doing all kinds of nasty stuff. And you see it. You literally see it.”
Suarez said the city’s bail reform is to blame for the crowd that hangs around off-hours in the iconic park.
“The cops can’t do anything with the new bail reform. They tell me. I talk to the cops. They arrest the criminals and then they get released the next day,” Suarez said.
“They need to clean up the streets [like they did in the 80s],” she added. “They need to take all the drug addicts and mentally ill people and put them in the hospital.”
Another local who was running in the area said the spot was not as well-lit as other parts of the park.
“I do run in the morning or in the afternoon,” the runner said. “There are always so many people around, but I would not run in the dark … It’s dangerous to run anywhere at night — anywhere in the world — especially if you are a woman running alone in the park.”
Other park-goers said they usually feel safe in Central Park, but noted they only come during daytime hours.
Maxine, 27, who works in finance and was talking a walk Sunday said she wasn’t concerned about rampant crime — at least during daylight hours.
“I’m in the park every day, usually in the morning before 9 a.m., jogging or walking, and I feel safe.”
No arrests had been made as of Sunday morning.
