A 22-year-old woman was groped by a stranger near 4th Avenue and 78th Street on the night of Friday, September 4, and the man who did it is still on the loose. Police say he struck up a conversation with her before grabbing her buttocks without permission and running off eastbound on 78th Street.
According to NYPD Crime Stoppers
, the encounter unfolded around 9:00 p.m. when the unidentified man approached the victim in the vicinity of 4th Avenue and 78th Street, engaged her in conversation, then forcibly touched her before fleeing. The location sits within the NYPD's 68th Precinct, which is headquartered at 333 65th Street and patrols the residential stretches of Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights, according to the
NYPD
. As of September 2026, that precinct is commanded by Captain Christopher P. Vincenti, who oversees local detectives and patrol officers across the neighborhood, per
50-a.org
.
The Fourth Avenue subway line includes R train service, according to nycsubway.org. Police said the suspect fled on foot.
Reward Offered for Tips Leading to an Arrest
NYPD Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward of up to $3,500 for anonymous tips that lead to an arrest and indictment, the program notes. Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or the Spanish-language line at 1-888-57-PISTA (74782), submit a tip through the Crime Stoppers website, or send a direct message to @NYPDTips on X. So far, the man remains unidentified, and detectives have not said whether surveillance footage from businesses along Fourth Avenue captured his escape route.
What the Charge Could Mean
Under New York Penal Law § 130.52, forcible touching is classified as a Class A misdemeanor that occurs when someone intentionally, and for no legitimate purpose, forcibly touches another person's sexual or intimate body parts, including squeezing, grabbing, or pinching, to degrade, abuse, or gratify sexual desire, according to Saland Law. A conviction can carry up to one year in prison, up to three years of probation, and fines as high as $1,000, per the Law Offices of SRIS, P.C.
The offense itself has a specific history in New York law. New York enacted forcible touching under the state's Sexual Assault Reform Act of 2000, according to CaseMine. A forcible-touching conviction triggers a mandatory SORA risk-level hearing; registration is required when the victim is under 18 or the defendant has certain criminal history, per the The Fast Law Firm, P.C.
Part of a Broader Pattern in Brooklyn
The case remains unsolved, and NYPD has asked anyone with information to come forward.
No arrests have been announced in the case, and detectives have not said whether they are examining ties between this incident and the other recent groping reports across the borough. Anyone with information is urged to contact NYPD Crime Stoppers through the hotline, website, or direct message.
