A homeless sex fiend on parole tried to rape a woman in Central Park — but was stopped in the act by quick-thinking good Samaritans, cops and sources said Tuesday.

Lateef Caldwell, 30, allegedly attacked the 45-year-old victim at about 5:40 p.m. Monday near 109th Street and East Drive years after he was convicted for an eerily similar assault that he blamed on a “misunderstanding,” according to police and court records.

The sicko was thwarted when bystanders intervened, law enforcement sources said.

The victim, who sources said was Muslim and wearing a hijab at the time, did not report any injuries.

The assailant attempted to run away but cops caught him at 106th Street and East Drive, according to the sources.

Caldwell, who lives in a Wards Island shelter, was charged with attempted rape, attempted sexual assault and sexual abuse, police said.

He was released on parole less than a year ago in connection to a similar sexual abuse case from April 20, 2022, also in Manhattan, the sources said.

In that incident, he allegedly tackled a 23-year-old stranger to the ground and attempted to pull down her pants while he straddled her on East 13th Street in the East Village, according to a criminal complaint and the sources.

Upon arrest, he allegedly gave investigators a bizarre defense for the sick crime, the complaint said. 

“I recognize her. I had a disturbance with her that was a misunderstanding,” he explained, according to the court doc. “I bumped into her and fell with her to the ground. I had an erection when it happened.”

He was initially charged with attempted rape and attempted sexual abuse, both in the first degree.

But he ultimately pleaded guilty to the lesser charge and was sentenced to three years in prison and five years of post-release supervision, prosecutors said. 

He was held in an upstate prison on that charge from March 21, 2023 until April 15, 2025, according to state Corrections records.

His parole is set to expire in 2029, the records show.

Caldwell’s arraignment in the new case was pending Tuesday night.

No rape incidents had been reported in Central Park as of Sunday, or during the same time period last year, according to department data.

But two other sex crimes that took place in the iconic greenspace were investigated by the NYPD as of Sunday — even with last year’s total, the statistics show. 

Citywide, the NYPD has investigated 463 rapes this year, about a 5 percent increase from the 441 counted during the same period last year.

The department has said that the rise in reported rape incidents since September 2024 is partly attributed to legislative changes that expanded the state’s legal definition of rape to include other forms of sexual assault.