After a woman was attacked and sexually assaulted while jogging in Manhattan’s Hudson River Park on Thursday morning, a man has been taken into custody and prosecuted. The 43-year-old woman was reportedly running in the park close to Pier 45 at around 5:30 in the morning when a man allegedly grabbed her from behind, choked her, and threw her to the ground.
Investigators said that while she was on the ground, he took her clothes off and raped her. Before fleeing the scene, the suspect allegedly grabbed her wallet and headphones. The victim was subsequently transferred to Lenox Hospital for treatment after flagging down another jogger who dialed 911.
Gabrielle Sumkin said that the woman had bleeding in her arms. “She spoke somewhat erratically. Based on what happened, she was undoubtedly severely scarred both physically and mentally.”
In connection with the attack on Thursday, Carl Phanor, 29, was charged with rape, grand larceny, predatory sexual assault, and unauthorized use of a credit card with the purpose to defraud.
Authorities said he was arrested at Port Authority shortly after using the victim’s credit card at a Target in Midtown, according to police. Police believe that this is the same person who attacked another woman in the same location in March. The person who assaulted a woman on the east side in October might also be this one.
In the March assault, a man on a bike rode up to a 39-year-old jogger at Pier 40, shoved her to the ground, choked her, and engaged in the sexual assault before stealing her phone.
On Thursday, Phanor was also accused of engaging in those two assaults. According to the police, Phanor has been detained on average 18 times before for crimes like criminal possession of stolen property and violence.
The victim is claimed to be stable and recovering, but she was still in the hospital on Thursday afternoon. Sumkin expressed her gratitude for being there for someone else in need. It’s been a tough day, but I’m glad I was able to help her, she said, adding that it was really