Adrees Omar of Woodbury, at hospital hearing, accused of rape, assault after chasing girl, standoff with cops
Nassau police at the scene Tuesday on Roseanne Drive in Woodbury where a man was arrested and charged after a standoff. Credit: Howard Schnapp
A Woodbury man who barricaded himself in his home after police saw him chasing a naked 14-year-old girl was arraigned Wednesday at a hospital on charges including rape, sexual assault and unlawful imprisonment, Nassau County police said.
Adrees Omar, 25, was arrested about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday after a standoff on Roseanne Drive that lasted more than eight hours, Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said.
Omar kept his eyes mostly shut and was handcuffed to a gurney as he entered a not-guilty plea Wednesday afternoon at Nassau University Medical Center, with prosecutors, police and his defense attorney, Kenneth Russo, present.
Authorities did not specify his medical condition, but Russo said Omar had been heavily sedated since his arrest.
Police said Wednesday that Omar “was having ongoing sexual relations” with the girl but did not further characterize the relationship, or how the two met. After his arrest, Omar was transported to the hospital for evaluation.
A Nassau County judge ordered Omar held without bail. The judge also issued two stay-away orders of protection against him connected to the girl and her father, prosecutors said. Omar is set to return to court Dec. 1.
The standoff began after police responded to an alarm about 9:15 a.m. Tuesday from a home on Roseanne Drive.
Once officers arrived, police said, they saw the girl running from a nearby residence with a man, later identified as Omar, in pursuit. Officers briefly chased the suspect but ultimately lost sight of him. A short time later, police said, Omar went back into the home where he lived, despite it being in foreclosure. The Town of Oyster Bay had issued a previous notification ordering him to leave, Ryder said.
The police Hostage Negotiations Team was in communication with Omar at the scene but when he refused requests to exit the residence, officials said, Special Operations officers eventually entered the home and took him into custody. Prosecutors alleged he spit at officers and scratched them before his arrest.
At the arraignment, prosecutors alleged that Omar pinned the girl on a bed and sliced her legs and forearms with scissors. Prosecutors also alleged he held the girl's neck and nose to obstruct her breathing.
Ryder said the girl suffered lacerations and was taken to a hospital, where she was evaluated.
Omar faces charges of first-degree criminal sexual act, second-degree rape, second-degree assault, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, second-degree unlawful imprisonment and two counts of criminal obstruction of breathing. Omar was also was charged with first-degree criminal contempt and second-degree criminal contempt for an unrelated prior incident.
Prosecutors also alleged that Omar and the girl had a previous sexual relationship between February and April, when she was 13.
Police ask anyone with additional information related to the case — or, who believes they may have been a victim — to call Crime Stoppers at 800-244-TIPS or the Special Victims Squad at 516-573-4022.
