Dereck Rivera-Deleon, 30, was arrested on November 10, 2026, while working at a Burger King in Miami Beach, Florida, in connection with a series of rapes in Central Park.
Arrest in Florida
New York City Police Department detectives assigned to the U.S. Marshals NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force took Rivera-Deleon into custody at the restaurant on Washington Avenue, according to the U.S. Marshals Service. Burger King stated that Rivera-Deleon worked for Burger King for less than two weeks and is no longer employed.
The fast-food establishment is situated directly across the street from the city’s police department headquarters.
Investigators linked Rivera-Deleon to an attack on October 24, 2026, involving a 39-year-old woman. Police stated that the victim was approached near East 67th Street and East Drive at approximately 8:30 p.m., threatened with a knife, and led into a wooded area where she was assaulted.
A pedestrian who saw the attack dialed 911, which sent the suspect fleeing further into the park. Emergency medical services transported the victim to a hospital in stable condition. Following the late-October assault, the department released surveillance images and video showing a suspect wearing dark clothing, a dark backpack, and a black hoodie while holding earbuds.
The New York City Police Department stated after the apprehension: The NYPD will stop at nothing to get dangerous criminals off our streets.
DNA Link to Prior Cases
Federal and city authorities stated that Rivera-Deleon is also connected to two earlier sexual assaults in Central Park that occurred on July 18, 2021, and October 6, 2023. Investigators tracked the suspect to Florida via his cellphone, and DNA evidence connected him to the additional two assaults, according to reporting.
NYPD detectives assigned to the U. S. Marshals NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force with support from @USMarshalsHQ partners took Dereck Rivera-Deleon into custody today while he was working at Burger King in Miami for allegedly raping a woman in Central Park on October 24, 2026.…
Police noted that all victims across the three incidents were strangers to the accused man, though one police source indicated he may have known the victim he raped in the park in 2023.
The search for the assailant triggered heightened safety concerns among park visitors, prompting the NYPD to increase police patrols throughout the greenspace and urge the public to remain vigilant regarding their surroundings. Mayor Zohran Mamdani previously addressed the incident, calling the assault “horrificand stating that
this is something that no one should have to endure,” while emphasizing that every New Yorker should be able to walk safely anywhere in the city.
Police records indicate there have been five reported rapes in Central Park during 2026, marking an increase compared to the three rapes recorded during the same timeframe the previous year.
Major crimes in the park rose 17% overall, driven by increases in robberies and rapes alongside the park’s first recorded homicide in at least a decade. With Rivera-Deleon’s apprehension, four of the five reported sexual assaults this year have been solved through arrests.
Extradition Proceedings
Following his capture, Rivera-Deleon was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade County as an out-of-state fugitive. An extradition hearing was scheduled in Miami.
Ricky J. Patel, U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of New York, stated: When violent offenders flee to evade justice, we will ensure there is no corner of the country where they can hide.