Four suspects in the gang rape of an 18-year-old girl at the Osborn Playground in Brownsville are in custody, after two of them — ages 14 and 15 — were brought in by their own families. Two other suspects, ages 15 and 17, have been caught by the police, and one teenager remains at large. Police sources tell the Daily News that two of the four suspects in custody are now claiming that the sex was consensual.
The arrests came after police released a surveillance video on Saturday, two days after the attack, showing several men entering a nearby bodega just before the incident. That time lag has generated criticism from officials and neighborhood residents, who say that the police should have acted faster. The police, in response, say they had already notified local leaders of the attack on Friday.
The details of the crime itself are especially horrible, although they are also somewhat hazy. According to the Daily News, a group of young men accosted a young woman and her father around 9:10 p.m. on Thursday, and, after the father was ordered away at gunpoint, reportedly took turns raping her. According to the father, it took him more than 15 minutes to find two uniformed officers. By the time he returned with them, the suspects had fled, and the FDNY responded to the emergency call at 9:26. The girl was brought into Kings County Hospital and has been treated and released. On Sunday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said he was “disgusted and extremely saddened by the horrific attack.”
This post has been updated to more accurately describe the details of the attack.
