Sisters Assaulted
In Home Invasion

Trio Tied With Tape; Women Sodomized...

By Charles Rogers

Four men armed with guns and wearing black masks broke into an apartment on East 85th Street near Avenue J early last Sunday morning and robbed three adult occupants, sodomizing and attempting to rape two females, police said.

According to Police Department spokesperson Jerry Varson, the home invasion occurred between midnight and 2:30 a.m. on July 22nd when the four men forced their way into the residence.

Varson said the victims told police of the 69th Precinct they were all asleep when the raiders, dressed in black overalls and wearing black handkerchiefs over the lower part of their faces, appeared inside the apartment, which belonged to two sisters, one 24 and the other 20. Another victim was the 31-year-old boy friend of one of the sisters. Also in the residence was the four-year-old son of the other sister.

The names of the victims, as well as the exact location of the incident, are being withheld.

All of the men who invaded the apartment had handguns, the victims told police, and one might have had a shotgun. One report noted the raiders climbed through the front window of the apartment, but that wasn’t corroborated by police.

The 24-year-old woman said the raiders tied her hands and feet, taped her mouth with duct tape and put something over her eyes while they sodomized and tried to rape her. She said they took $200 cash and some jewelry, as well as bank and credit cards from her.

The second sister said her hands and feet were also tied with rope and duct tape while she was sodomized. She said she didn’t know at the time whether or not she was robbed of any cash or jewelry.

The male victim said he was ordered to lie face down and also had his hands tied behind his back with duct tape and rope. His mouth was taped closed and something was put over his eyes as he was told to "shut up." He said he was otherwise not hurt. The man said the attackers took $180 and various credit cards from him.

The first sister said her son was asleep in another room when the attack occurred and that he did not awaken during the incident. She said the home invaders ransacked the apartment.

At one point — approximately two hours after the house was invaded —the victims heard a door slam and thought the men had left but discovered they returned a few minutes later. The second time they heard a door slam, they waited about 15 minutes and then called police.

When emergency service units arrived, the women were taken to Kings County Hospital where they were treated an released.

Anyone with information is asked to call the 69th Precinct Detective Squad at 257-6215. All calls will be kept strictly confidential.