By C1 Staff
NEW YORK — A group of inmates are being credited with rescuing a female Rikers Correctional Facility officer from being raped by another inmate, according to the New York Daily News.
The inmates tore away Plexiglass on the outside of a watch post inside the Anna M. Kross Center around 8:15 p.m.
One of the inmates slipped inside the post and opened a nearby security door, allowing the other inmates to enter and tackle Raleek Young. The inmates held him down until other officers could arrive.
Young allegedly pulled down his pants and began masturbating while choking the officer. He also dragged her into an adjacent bathroom and blocked her from escaping.
A spokesperson for the DOC said the incident is under investigation.
The majority of the attack was allegedly caught on video.
Young was able to get inside the post area after he claimed he needed to pick up a mattress in another unit and had to pass through the post.
Staff took offense when the administration originally labeled the incident a “routine use of force,” instead demanding that it be labeled a sexual assault, according to the Daily News.
Staff refused to return to their posts on Sunday at the start of the 3 p.m. shift, prompting their union president, Norman Seakbrook, to convince them to return to work after he promised to look into the incident.
Young was arraigned Monday in Bronx Criminal Court, and is facing a slew of new charges. He is currently serving time for raping a 13-year-old girl in 2007.
The officer attacked was treated at a nearby hospital.
Seabrook was thankful for the inmates’ assistance, noting that the incident could have been much worse if not for their intervention.