By Nina Mandell
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Police charged a man with raping a tourist in Riverside Park on Tuesday, two days after meeting her at the Time Warner Center.
Hugues Akassy, of Washington, D.C., allegedly lured a Russian woman he met at the Midtown shopping center to Riverside Park for a picnic and then raped her, the New York Post reported.
Akassy and his victim had a picnic near the 79th Street Boat Basin on Tuesday after meeting and exchanging contact information at Time Warner Center on Sunday. After eating at the park, Akassy allegedly told the woman he wanted to take her to see an area of the park with a scenic view, the paper reported.
That's when the peaceful date turned into a nightmare for the victim when Aksassy allegedly raped her, police said. The woman, who was reportedly visiting from Russia, ran from the park and found a group of men who called police.
Akassy was charged with rape and sexual abuse, police told DNAinfo. The Post reported he is being held on $100,000 bail.
The attack is the latest in a series of brutal attacks in Riverside Park. Police are still searching for a man who mugged two women last month in broad daylight.
