Police nabbed a man who allegedly attacked two school girls — grabbing one and kissing the other — outside a Shake Shack on the Upper West Side this week, authorities said Thursday.
Police released this image of the suspect.NYPDHerbert Stokes, 36, whom cops identify as a homeless man who resides at a men’s shelter on Wards Island, was arrested on charges of endangering the welfare of a child and sex abuse, police said.
Cops said the victims, ages 12 and 13, who attend the nearby Anderson School – were accosted by Stokes in separate incidents at the burger joint on Columbus Avenue at W. 77th Street, just behind the Museum of Natural History, around 11:30 a.m. on Monday.
Stokes grabbed the 12-year-old victim by the wrists on the outside stairs between the restaurant’s lower-level dining area and the street, police said. She pulled away, and the man continued downstairs to the restaurant.
About 10 minutes later, Stokes approached the 13-year-old girl outside the restaurant, asked her name and hugged her while kissing her right cheek. She broke free and fled down Columbus Avenue.
