Crime & Safety
Croton Man On Metro-North Put Hand Up Woman's Skirt: DA
The victim first confronted the man then reported the assault, prosecutors said.
CROTON-ON-HUDSON, NY — A 49-year-old is accused of putting his hand up the skirt of a passenger sitting next to him on a Metro-North train. When she confronted him, Jonathan VanAntwerpen got off at the Croton-Harmon train station, prosecutors allege.
VanAntwerpen was arraigned Wednesday on a charge of Forcible Touching, appearing in court in his home town before Croton-on-Hudson Village Justice Sam Watkins. He was released without bail and is scheduled to return to court Dec. 18.
Westchester County District Attorney Anthony A. Scarpino, Jr. alleged that on Sept. 27, VanAntwerpen was seated on a northbound Metro-North train during the evening rush hour, next to a woman he did not know. The charge alleges that he pressed his leg into hers. He then moved his hand up her thigh and under her skirt.
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The victim not only confronted him but also reported it. The MTA police, with the help of the Greenburgh police and New York State Police, conducted an investigation, including viewing surveillance video recorded on the train and surrounding area, prosecutors alleged.
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