Local Parents Rattled After Lewd Incidents Near Children In Prospect Park

Recent lewd incidents in close near a playground in Prospect Park have caused great concern among some parents in the community.

On Thursday, August 27 at approximately 9:45am, a woman tells us she witnessed a man masturbating while he was sitting on a park bench just outside of the Garfield Field Tot Lot, located at the Garfield Place and Prospect Park West entrance of the park.

“He fled when I screamed and took out my phone,” she explained. The woman, who was with her two toddlers at the time, requested that her name be withheld.

“I called 911. [The police]  responded to the scene, [and]  that is where I spoke with them in person,” she said. She filed a police report on Friday, August 28.

Sergeant Briar of the 78th Precinct confirmed a report had been filled out on Friday concerning the incident.

“Unfortunately, we still don’t have a name,” said Sergeant Briar. Although police tell us the description fits that of a suspect arrested for a similar incident in the park the previous week, Sergeant Briar explained that a “connection still cannot be confirmed.”

Though it’s unclear yet if it’s related, on Thursday, August 20 at approximately 10:30am, another woman (who also requested to have her name withheld) witnessed an incident near the Third Street Playground, also located near Prospect Park West.

“There was a man sitting on one of the park benches,” she told us over email. “I have seen him several times before in the park, and he had just taken his erect penis out of his pants. He couldn’t have been more than ten feet from some of the kids. I shouted at the mothers and nannies who were in the park, and they shouted at him. He got up and shuffled away.”

In this circumstance, the woman called the 78th Precinct directly. She expressed concern about the response she received.

“I called the precinct about ten minutes later and told them what happened. They took a description and location and said they’d pass it on to park authorities,” she explained. “I asked if they would like my contact info in case they wanted a further statement or to i.d. him. They said no, they had all the info they needed. I was a little surprised at that.”

We’ve reached out to the 78th Precinct regarding this incident and the woman’s interaction with responding officers, and are awaiting a response.

The same woman who witnessed the August 20 incident walked past the Third Street Playground on Thursday, August 27.

“I was passing by the playground and there were two cops in a car,” she told us. “They said there had been another incident — not at the playground — just outside the park. It was good to see them patrolling, although they did say it was only the two of them for the entire park.”

While there are concerns over the possibility that a suspect is still at large, worries continue about a thin police presence patrolling Prospect Park.

“Why aren’t there more police around the park? There seems to be only one car patrolling, or sometimes none at all,” said the woman who reported the incident near the Garfield Tot Lot on August 27.

While this investigation continues, if you witness suspicious behavior, call 911 immediately.