Illegal alien accused of raping 13-year-old girl at knifepoint in NYC park
An illegal immigrant was apprehended in a citizens’ arrest and taken into police custody after he allegedly kidnapped two teens in a New York City park and sexually assaulted one of them.
Around 3:30 p.m. last Thursday, two 13-year-olds, one male and one female, were hanging out together at Kissena Park in Queens when they were suddenly approached by a man wielding what police later described as a “large machete-style knife.”
He showed up around 1 a.m. the following morning, and they immediately apprehended him, holding him in a headlock and binding his legs together with a belt until police arrived.
With the weapon in hand, the man forced the teens to walk to a remote, wooded area of the park. There, he seized their cellphones, tied them together with shoelaces, and proceeded to rape the young girl. He ordered the kids to stay put for 20 minutes and then fled the area.
The teens managed to free themselves from their bonds and ran back to their school, where they reported the attack. School officials then called police.
The victims also gave a detailed description of their attacker. They claimed he was an Hispanic man in his 20s with dark, curly hair, braces, and a chest tattoo of a bull or boar with horns.
Officers then captured images of the suspect riding a bike. They then posted the images on flyers and on social media, hoping that someone might recognize him.
That good, old-fashioned police work paid off. Residents recognized him as living at their migrant shelter and planned to nab him if they had the chance.
On Monday night, “half a dozen good Samaritans” sat and waited for the suspect, WABC reported. He showed up around 1 a.m. the following morning, and they immediately apprehended him, holding him in a headlock and binding his legs together with a belt until police arrived.
The man was taken into police custody and then transported to an area hospital for minor injuries he sustained during his apprehension.
The man was later identified as Christian Giovani Landi, a 25-year-old Ecuadorian national who entered the U.S. illegally in June 2021. In the last three years, he has racked up several transit summonses but no other arrests, ABC News said. Whether ICE has yet issued a detainer against him is unclear.
At this point, Landi is still considered just a “strong person of interest” in the park rape, though pictures of a shirtless Landi walking with police show he has a large animal tattoo on his chest. Charges against him are pending.
NYPD Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry claimed that the victims were “invaluable” in helping find their alleged attacker. “The sketches from those brave kids were invaluable,” he said.
“The city’s response was a resounding ‘no’ to this heinous crime.”
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