STUYVESANT TOWN — Stuy Town is ramping up security in wake of a brutal assault and robbery of a woman near the complex, a spokeswoman for the property manager said.
A security guard will be posted to the First Avenue border of Stuy Town following an attack over the weekend, when a woman was beaten unconscious and robbed of her phone near the avenue on East 18th Street.
The robber is still at large, and police have released photos of the suspect, who was caught on a surveillance camera entering a Stuy Town building.
The guard will be keeping watch, with particular attention on the 16th Street and 18th Street entrances, from 11 p.m. to 7 p.m., according Paula Chirhart, a spokeswoman for Stuy Town Property Services and Blackstone, which owns the complex.
“It’s not like they weren’t watching First Avenue before, but now we’ll have someone specifically posted there,” she said.
A 30-year-old woman was grabbed in a chokehold from behind and dragged to the ground in front of 329 E. 18th St., between First and Second avenues, at about 2:20 a.m. on Saturday, police said.
When she tried to fight back, the suspect punched her in the face multiple times until she lost consciousness, according to authorities.
When she awoke, the attacker had fled, her iPhone was missing and her underwear had been pulled down to her knees, police said.
The victim was treated at Beth Israel Hospital, officials said.
Police released surveillance footage showing the suspect that was taken from inside a Stuy Town building — sparking serious concern for residents of the complex, according to Susan Steinberg, president of the Peter Cooper Village-Stuyvesant Town Tenants Association.
“It’s very frightening, very unnerving, and I’m just glad we have security cameras in the lobby,” she said.
In an email to the community on Wednesday Stuy Town General Manager Rick Hayduk reminded residents to be vigilant and to not hold doors open for strangers, a long-running refrain of management and residents of the complex.
