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Man Arrested for Allegedly Raping Woman at Bowery Subway Station

By Wil Cruz | February 10, 2012 9:48am
Michale Torres, 29, allegedly raped a woman at the Bowery J train station on Weds., Feb. 8, 2012.
Michale Torres, 29, allegedly raped a woman at the Bowery J train station on Weds., Feb. 8, 2012.
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NY State Dept. of Corrections

LOWER MANHATTAN — A screwdriver-wielding man with a long rap sheet has been arrested and charged for allegedly raping a woman on the subway tracks at the Bowery station on the Lower East Side, police said.

Michael Torres, 29, has been hit with a slew of charges including sexual assault and attempted rape following the alleged attack on a 36-year-old woman at the desolate station early Wednesday, according to police and court documents

About 12:30 a.m. on Feb. 8, as the victim exited a J train at the Bowery station, Torres approached the woman from behind on an escalator and grabbed her by the neck, preventing her from yelling out, cops and court documents said.

"He told her not to scream," a police source said.

According to the criminal complaint, Torres threw the victim to the ground and dragged her to the end of the subway platform holding a metal tool against her neck, before pushing the woman onto the tracks, where she struck her head.

He then dragged the woman further into the subway tunnel, pulling her hair and repeatedly hitting her head against the train tracks and a concrete wall, before forcing himself on her, the complaint said.

It wasn't until a track worker interrupted the attack that Torres ran away, cops said. The track worker, who was not identified, called 911.

The woman, who suffered injuries to her mouth, ribs and back, was taken to Bellevue Hospital, FDNY officials said.

Surveillance video outside of the train station captured Torres going to a nearby men's shelter at 197 Bowery.

Police arrested him Wednesday at 9:45 p.m. He was arraigned Friday in Manhattan Criminal Court on charges ranging from sexual assault and criminal sexual act to attempted rape and reckless endangerment.

Torres has nearly 30 prior arrests for robberies, drugs and other crimes.