NY man accused of sexually assaulting, killing 92-year-old woman says his 'pants fell' as he was helping her
QUEENS, NEW YORK: A man accused of sexually assaulting and killing a 92-year-old woman in Queens has now told the police that he was actually trying to help the old woman when he lost his balance and his belt broke, resulting in his pants falling down and his genitals accidentally coming in contact with the old lady's.
The details were revealed in court on Friday, January 10, when a prosecutor said during his arraignment that 21-year-old Reeaz Khan had told detectives how he had found the elderly Maria Fuertes on the ground near Liberty Avenue and 127th Street in Richmond Hill at about midnight on Monday, January 6, and tried to help her.
Khan told detectives that he "fell down, his belt broke, his pants fell down and his penis fell near her vagina," the prosecutor, Joseph Grasso, said in court.
Khan claimed that it was at this point that something came over him, and according to the prosecutor: "Defendant then stated that he did lift up her skirt and he tried to put his penis inside of her."
According to the New York Post, sources had previously said how Khan had admitted to suffering “uncontrollable urges,” and said that this was the first time ever that he had acted on them.
The woman, Fuertes was found lying in 32-degree weather, half-dressed, believed to have been in that state for two hours according to the criminal complaint. She was found conscious, but "incoherent," at around 2 am.
Court papers reveal that she had suffered a broken spine, rib fractures, and even bruising on her chest and neck among several other injuries.
Prosecutors have also noted that investigator have collected surveillance footage significant enough to place Khan at the scene and then traces him back to his house.
He was ordered held without bond and is supposed to appear in court this coming Wednesday, January 15. His defense attorney has also asked the judge that he be placed in protective custody while behind bars.
According to the police, Khan had allegedly followed Fuertes from Liberty Avenue onto 127th Street. It was there that he came up behind her, threw her to the ground and attacked and sexually assaulted her, police said.
“There was some sort of physical contact between the two … causing both of them to fall to the ground, where they landed behind a parked car,” Deputy Chief of Detective Bureau Queens South Joseph Kenny said earlier Friday. Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz noted that the victim was found “with her clothes pulled above her waist and near death,” called the murder “a senseless, brutal act of violence.”