Suspect in Central Park assaults apprehended in Miami

Dereck Rivera-Deleon, 30, was apprehended during a joint operation involving the NYPD, U.S. Marshals Service, and Miami Beach police at a restaurant on Washington Avenue.

“The NYPD will stop at nothing to get dangerous criminals off our streets,” the department stated on X.

Rivera-Deleon had recently relocated to South Florida and secured employment at the restaurant, according to law enforcement.

The arrest was prompted by an investigation into a rape that occurred on October 24 near Central Park’s eastern edge.

A warrant for extradition was issued Monday related to the October 24 incident. The assault took place around 8:30 p.m. near East 66th Street and Fifth Avenue.

The victim, a 39-year-old woman, reported being threatened with a knife, forced into a wooded area, and assaulted before the suspect fled.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani previously condemned the October 24 attack as “horrific.”

DNA evidence and victim identifications have linked Rivera-Deleon to alleged assaults in Central Park in 2021 and 2023. He is expected to be charged in connection with those earlier incidents as well.

“When violent offenders flee to evade justice, we will ensure there is no corner of the country where they can hide,” said Ricky J. Patel, U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of New York.

Rivera-Deleon is currently held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, awaiting extradition to New York to face charges.