GREENWICH VILLAGE — An employee at the upscale Greenwich Village doggie spa Biscuits & Bath is under arrest after allegedly raping a female coworker inside the store, prosecutors said.
Vincent Lopez, 21, was working at the 41 W. 13th St. location of the high-end chain, which offers 24-hour kennel, grooming and exercise services for dogs, when he attacked his coworker at 2:30 a.m. Saturday, according to the criminal complaint.
While the terrified victim tried pushing Lopez away from her, he punched her in the face, ripped her clothes off and assaulted her, according to the complaint. Lopez was drunk during the attack, police said.
The victim locked herself in the bathroom after the attack and called police, sparking a manhunt that led to Lopez’s arrest in the Bronx Tuesday night, police said at a public meeting Wednesday night.
"I bet I'm in big trouble, aren't I?" Lopez allegedly told police upon his arrest, police said.
Lopez was arraigned Wednesday on felony first-degree rape charges, according to a criminal complaint.
He is being held at Manhattan House of Detention on $50,000 bail, according to the Department of Corrections. A judge also issued a temporary order of protection against him on behalf of the victim.
Employees at Biscuit & Bath, which has six other locations in Manhattan, confirmed Thursday that Lopez had worked at the store, but said, “He's no longer employed here."
They declined to say what Lopez’s job at the store was.
But Lopez describes himself as a Biscuits & Bath "dog care supervisor" at the luxury dog center on his Facebook page.
He wrote that his job duties include "a head count follow up, check up on dog with in fourty five (sic) minutes, grooming pets, cleaning facility,sercurity (sic), ill-in reports for sick dogs, providing first aid kite (sic). and to be continued..."
He also wrote that he graduated from Lehman High School in the Bronx in 2010 with a maintenance and electrical license.
A rep for Biscuits & Bath did not return calls for comment.
