Mount Vernon boy, 15, charged in 2 rapes

MOUNT VERNON – A 15-year-old city boy is accused of abducting and raping an 11-year-old girl and a 23-year-old-woman on two occasions last year.

Javon Roberts of 113 S. 14th Ave. dragged both victims to the Grimes Elementary School, where the sexual attacks took place in October and December, according to the Westchester County District Attorney's Office.

Roberts was arraigned Wednesday and is charged as an adult with multiple felonies, including rape, kidnapping and sexual assault. He is being held without bail and is due back in court May 12.

Investigators said they linked Roberts, a freshman at Mount Vernon High School, to the attacks through DNA collected from a water bottle when he was questioned on an unrelated incident.

"The brutal and violent acts this defendant is alleged to have committed against these two victims, one an 11-year-old girl, are extremely dangerous and disturbing," District Attorney Janet DiFiore said in a statement. "We are thankful for the excellent detective work and forensic analysis performed in this case and we are most grateful for the courage displayed by these two victims in coming forward to assist in holding this defendant accountable for the depraved crimes he is accused of committing."

Authorities said the first attack occurred Oct. 20, when Roberts accosted the 23-year-old woman walking home from work. He put a knife to her throat and forced her to accompany him to the school, where he repeatedly raped and sodomized her, according to the prosecutor's office.

The second attack took place Dec. 4, when the 11-year-old girl was walking home after attending a Christmas concert at a library. The child was raped and sodomized in a stairwell adjacent to the playground for more than two hours, authorities said. Roberts threatened to kill her if she did not stop crying, according to records.

Even though he is being charged as an adult, Roberts is considered a juvenile offender because he is under 16. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.

Twitter: @JaneLernerNY