Central Park rape suspect caught at Miami Burger King after weeks-long search: NYPD
Detectives have released surveillance camera images of the man suspected of a violent rape in Central Park over the weekend.
NYPD
The suspect who allegedly raped a woman in Central Park at knifepoint last month has been apprehended in Florida, police reported on Tuesday.
According to police sources, 30-year-old Dereck Rivera-Deleon was tracked down and taken into custody by NYPD detectives assigned to the U.S. Marshals Regional Fugitive Task Force Tuesday as he worked at a Miami Burger King.
Rivera-Deleon had been on the run since Oct. 24 when he allegedly approached a 39-year-old woman as she walked near East 67th Street and East Drive at around 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 24. He then brandished a knife and led her further into the park, where he raped her.
A pedestrian who saw the attack dialed 911, which sent the suspect fleeing further into the park.
Officers from the Central Park Precinct and paramedics responded to the scene of the attack. The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital, where she was listed in stable condition.
Investigators now believe Rivera-Deleon is responsible for even more attacks in Central Park, including one that took place on July 18, 2021, and Oct. 6, 2023. All of the victims were strangers to him, police said.
“The NYPD will stop at nothing to get dangerous criminals off our streets,” the NYPD said in an X post.
Rivera-Deleon is expected to be extradited back to the Big Apple to face booking and arraignment for the Oct. 24 attack.
