Suspect arrested in attack on NYU student has lengthy criminal history, including 16 arrests

45-year-old James Rizzo was arraigned and ordered to undergo psychiatric evaluation

Sonia Rincon has the latest details on the attacks.

GREENWICH VILLAGE, Manhattan (WABC) — A suspect with a lengthy criminal past was arrested in the random attack of an NYU student as she walked to class on Monday morning.

Video of the attack has since gone viral and the 20-year-old victim has spoken out, calling it the scariest experience of her life.

Suspect James Rizzo, 45, was released from state prison in September after serving two years on a conviction for persistent sexual abuse.

Rizzo has 16 prior arrests including one in December 2023 for forcible touching when police said he groped a 33-year-old woman on Greene Street in Greenwich Village and asked, “Oh you want more.”

Police say he is a level 2 sex offender for the 2023 forcible touching arrest.

He was also charged with attempted murder in 1997 for beating and stabbing a man in Brooklyn when he was 17 years old.

This most recent incident happened Monday morning in front of 735 Broadway. Amelia Lewis was walking down the street when police say Rizzo walked up behind her.

Police say he pulled her hair and slapped her head and buttocks, knocking her to the ground.

“He proceeded to grab my hair and violently and forcefully throw me to the ground,” said the victim, Amelia Lewis, on a podcast on Wednesday. “He targets me and follows me from behind. So there is no way I could have seen it.”

Bystanders watched in shock before a group of women behind her stopped to help and called 911.

Lewis said she is grateful for those good Samaritans.

“I am so grateful that I wasn’t alone on a dark abandoned street with no people around, and also I’m so thankful that no weapons were involved. This could have been so much worse knowing now who he actually is,” Lewis said.

Police say they later arrested Rizzo, who is homeless, on Tuesday, and charged him persistent sexual abuse, forcible touching and assault.

The NYPD said they were called for a man sleeping in a building. Investigators then made the connection to Monday’s attack, and arrested Rizzo.

He was also charged with burglary on four separate occasions in that building, mostly while residents of the apartments were sleeping.

He is also charged with assault for allegedly shoving a 68-year-old woman on Thanksgiving in Midtown. She had to receive a total of six stitches after falling into a building due to the assault.

Rizzo did not comment as he was led out of the 6th precinct in handcuffs on Tuesday night.

Rizzo has a history of mental illness and has failed to report to his parole officer, who recommended that the suspect be remanded.

On Wednesday night, Rizzo was arraigned. He was remanded by a judge, and ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.

NYU says it is offering support to the student, and are pleased that the suspect is in custody.

“The University is pleased that a suspect has been apprehended in the attack on one of its students that took place Monday morning on a Broadway sidewalk,” NYU spokesperson John Beckman said. “We take this incident very seriously. We are continuing to offer support to the student, and our Campus Safety Department assisted the victim and worked with the police investigating the incident.”

Investigators are now trying to determine if Rizzo is responsible for other random attacks on female students at NYU.

Lewis posted Tuesday night that she is in “a much better place…knowing this perpetrator won’t hurt any more young women.”

Six charged after police allegedly find man and teen travelling with loaded guns in Sydney taxi

Police allege a 16-year-old and 20-year-old were in the car with firearms and a dedicated encrypted phone

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Four men and two teenage boys have been charged after police allegedly caught two of them travelling in a Sydney taxi with loaded guns.

The arrests are part of an ongoing investigation into a shooting in Sydney’s north-west in November where police allege two men fired shots and a stun grenade into a home in Tallawong.

A 19-year-old was arrested and charged for his role in the incident as police continue to home in on other members of the allegedly violent group.

Police on Monday said they arrested a 16-year-old boy and a 20-year-old man in Old Toongabbie in Sydney’s west.

The pair, also believed by police to have taken part in the Tallawong shooting, were travelling in a taxi and allegedly in possession of two loaded firearms and a dedicated encrypted criminal communication device.

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Acting Det Supt Brad Abdy of New South Wales police said the men were on their way to commit a serious violent act.

“They were stopped by members of our highway patrol, and they were actually in a taxi,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

“They were arrested shortly after they ran … We believe they were on their way to commit a further serious act involving firearms.”

Later on Monday, a 25-year-old man was arrested in Guildford where police allege he was found in possession of two mobile phones, one of which was also an encrypted communication device.

He was refused bail and is set to appear before a Sydney court on Tuesday.

Further searches at Rouse Hill in north-west Sydney uncovered four stolen vehicles, five firearms, thousands of rounds of high-calibre ammunition, fake number plates and two ballistic vests.

As police were on scene, three males – two men aged 18 and 23, and a 17-year-old boy – were arrested after trying to flee the property.

The 16-year-old boy and 20-year-old man found travelling in the taxi with loaded firearms have been charged with a range of offences including multiple firearm-related offences and participating in criminal group activity.skip past newsletter promotion

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Both have been refused bail and were set to appear before a court in Sydney on Tuesday.

The three men who fled during the police search of a Rouse Hill property have also been charged with similar offences.

All three were refused bail to appear before a Sydney court later on Tuesday.

“This seizure certainly hinders that group and dismantles that criminal syndicate,” Abdy said.

Police believe the group operate as a team contracted to carry out offences on behalf of others.

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Vacaville police officer’s stop for food led to gun, public intoxication arrests

A restaurant customer flagged down an officer who had stopped to eat after a man allegedly threatened to kill him over a table and seating dispute, police said.

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Author: Alex Muegge

VACAVILLE, Calif. — A police officer’s stop to grab a quick bite Wednesday night in Vacaville led to arrests on firearm and public intoxication charges, authorities said.

The officer visited a busy restaurant around 8 p.m. on Nut Tree Parkway, and a customer flagged him down to report a man was armed with a gun and had just threatened to kill him, according to a news release from the Vacaville Police Department.

“He pointed out the man sitting near a window,” officers wrote in the news release.

The man in question, identified as a 20-year-old Vacaville resident, allegedly stood up and began walking toward the officer, police said.

The officer reportedly gave clear commands, the man complied, then he was safely detained, according to law enforcement. Officers said they found a concealed, loaded handgun in the man’s jacket.

The man allegedly threatened to kill the customer over a minor dispute about tables and restaurant seating, police said.

Police said they also contacted a 22-year-old Vacaville resident who allegedly refused to comply with commands but was also safely detained. Authorities said he was at the restaurant with the 20-year-old and carried a concealed, loaded and unserialized handgun in his waistband.

The pair were booked into Solano County Jail; they face public intoxication and firearm-related charges, per law enforcement.

Officers said the 20-year-old also faces a probation violation.

“Right place, right time,” officers wrote on social media. “…We are grateful our officer was nearby when this happened. This situation could have had a very different outcome, and we appreciate the calm cooperation of the individuals inside the restaurant.”