A Walk in the Park: Police Charge Serial Sex Offender In Queens Parks Attacks

Sketch of suspect Michael Andrade, 45, wanted in a string of sexual assaults on female joggers beginning in 2011 in Forest Park. In September 2013 Police released a new sketch of the suspect wanted in the Forest Park rape and had tied him to five more sexual assaults around the area. At the time a $22,000 reward had been offered for information on the case. The park has a long history of sexual assaults and other criminal activities.

In 2009 two woman reported being raped in Forest Park. In July 2011, Carl Wallace, 30, was sentenced to serve up to 32 years for the 2009 knife-point rape and robbery of a 29-year-old woman in Forest Park.

Queens

By Geoffrey Croft

Police charged a Richmond Hill man who terrorized women beginning in 2011 in a Queens Park. The victim's ages were between 13 and 69-years-old.

Police arrested Mark Andrade 45, yesterday morning outside his home of 102-14 91st Avenue, at 9:00am after recovering DNA that matched a 2003 park attack of a 24-year-old jogger.

He was arrested for a March 29, 2003 sexual attack of the jogger in Forest Park on a bridle path in which the suspect used a stun gun.

He is also a suspect in five other attacks in the park over six years matching the same the pattern according to police. In all, the pattern consisted of one rape and five attempted rapes.

The female victim was able to grab a beer bottle out of the assailant’s rear pocket she threw it way at the scene. People recovered DNA from the bottle and were able to link him to the crime.

“This one young lady struggled with him and actually pulled a beer (bottle) out of his back pocket and then threw it,” said NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce.

“We retrieved that beer bottle as part of the crime scene. That’s where we swabbed and got the DNA,” he said at a press conference today.

Mark Andrade is charged with Attempted Rape, Robbery (he took the victim’s cell phone), Assault, Attempted Predatory Sex Assault, Sex abuse and Criminal Possession of a Weapon for using a stun gun.

Police said they were able to recover DNA in two of the cases after he was arrested in Nassau County for grand larceny and his DNA was entered into the database.

His last arrest was in Rockville Center, Long Island for grand larceny in 2015. Following that arrest, he was required to give a DNA sample.

Police have DNA in one other (unspecified) attack in this pattern but he has not yet been charged.

Police say he is responsible for six attacks in total on female joggers on the bridal past between March 2011 and August 2013 but has so far been charged with only one.

Andrade has six prior arrests, none for sex crimes including a 1989 arrest in NYC is sealed and five others in Long Island for grand larceny and insurance fraud.

Pattern

• March 25th, 2011, 11:30 a.m., a 54-year-old jogger was attacked on the bridal path. The woman was jogging early in the morning when a man wearing a black ski mask grabbed her from behind and attempted to pull off her running tights. She fought him off.

• September 7, 2011, 10 p.m., a 13-year-old girl was attacked on the bridal path. The suspect threw her to the ground and attempted to pull her shorts down. The victim screamed and fought off the suspect who then fled the location.

• August 15, 2012, 1 p.m. a 34-year-old female was attacked on the bridal path.

• November 28, 2012, 10 a.m. a 40-year-old was attacked on the bridal path

• March 29, 2013, 7 p.m., a 24-year-old female was attacked on the bridal path. (Crime police charged him with today)

• August 26, 2013, 4:30 p.m., a 69-year-old woman was attacked on the bridal path. (A stun gun was in this attack)

Police have tied the man wanted in a Forest Park rape to five more sexual assaults around the area and have released a new sketch of the suspect.