By Rich Bockmann
A Springfield Gardens teenager was sentenced to 20 years in prison last week for sexually assaulting a woman and violently raping another in Valley Stream, L.I., on separate occasions last summer, Nassau County prosecutors said.
Nashane Peterkin, 17, was handed the two-decade sentence in Mineola, L.I., after he pleaded guilty in December to attacking the unsuspecting women as they went about their day, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said.
“Women should be able to take a stroll in the park or walk home from the train station without fear of being the victim of a violent predator,” Rice said. “While the physical and emotional trauma inflicted by Nashane Peterkin on these women will never be erased, this defendant will be in prison for a long time, where he will not be able to terrorize his victims or violate a community’s sense of safety.”
Law enforcement officials said Peterkin approached his first victim, a 30-year-old pregnant woman, around 9 p.m. Aug. 12 as she walked south along Mill Road from the Valley Stream Long Island Rail Road station.
As the woman ran away the teenager chased after her, pushing her to the ground and punching her in the face as he tried to rip her clothes off, police said.
Peterkin’s victim was able to fight off her attacker, who fled on his bicycle, authorities said.
The next incident came weeks later, when Peterkin attacked a 61-year-old woman just after 11 a.m. Sept. 1 as she was walking along a hiking path in Valley Stream State Park.
Police said Peterkin strangled the woman almost to the point of her passing out and dragged her into a wooded area where he raped her.
Authorities tracked the teen down a few days later and arrested him in Howard Beach.
Peterkin had been previously convicted of three separate sexual assaults in Queens as a juvenile.
Rice added that on top of the 20-year sentence. Supreme Court Judge Angelo Delligatti gave the teenager 20 years of post-release supervision and recommended that upon getting out of prison Peterkin undergo a hearing to determine whether he is predisposed to commit sexual crimes.
If a judge or jury determined this to be the case, Peterkin may be civilly confined to a treatment facility.
Reach reporter Rich Bockmann by e-mail at rbockmann@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4574.
