Cops: Evicted man attacks homeowner

A man being evicted from a home in West Hempstead attacked the homeowner, holding a knife to her throat and threatening to kill her, before fleeing the scene Sunday, Nassau County police said.

The assailant, Nicholas S. Reilly, 23, surrendered to police about six hours later and was charged with first-degree burglary, police said.

Police said the incident occurred around noon Sunday at the home in West Hempstead.

It was then, police said, that the 47-year-old homeowner answered a knock at her back door and Reilly grabbed her, forced her into the kitchen, put a knife to her throat and threatened to kill her. The woman was not injured, police said.

Police said Reilly fled but turned himself in at the Fifth Precinct at 6:05 p.m.

He is scheduled for arraignment Monday in First District Court in Hempstead.