A New York man who was arrested last week for allegedly carrying out five sex-related attacks was awaiting sentencing for another sex charge at the time.
On September 15, Justin Washington, 25, allegedly attacked four women and a man near a homeless shelter where he was residing in the Bronx. According to the New York Post, Washington initially climbed through a window and groped an 18-year-old man’s buttocks while demanding money before fleeing empty-handed.
About 40 minutes later, a woman reportedly witnessed Washington masturbating on a fire escape while banging on her apartment window. Shortly after that, Washington broke into an apartment in the same building and tried to rape another woman, sources told the New York Post.
During the reported attempted rape, the victim bit and scratched Washington and struck him in the head with a hammer. Roughly 15 minutes later, Washington allegedly stole a pair of underwear from a different woman’s bathroom and masturbated.
According to the Post, Washington’s final victim was a homeless woman sleeping in the lobby of the apartment building where the underwear theft occurred. Surveillance footage reportedly showed him molesting the woman, pulling down her pants, groping her buttocks, and masturbating.
Washington was arrested at a homeless shelter two days later. He is charged with attempted rape, burglary, forcible touching, and a sexually-motivated felony.
Law enforcement sources told the Post that at the time of last week’s incident, Washington was awaiting sentencing for a rape involving a teen relative. Washington was arrested in February after the victim said he sexually assaulted her while they watched television.
While Washington was originally charged with first-degree rape and first-degree sexual abuse, the charges were downgraded to third-degree rape after prosecutors determined they had insufficient evidence. The Post reported that his bail was reduced from $25,000 to $12,000.
In August, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg offered Washington a plea deal that required him to plead guilty to second-degree coercion in exchange for a 30-day jail sentence and five years of probation. He would not have to register as a sex offender, according to the news outlet.
Washington was to be sentenced a week before the September 15 incident in the Bronx. Bragg’s office is reportedly reconsidering the plea deal in light of his latest arrest. That case has been postponed until September 28, The Post reported.
Washington remains jailed on $50,000 bail.
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[Featured image: NYPD]
