Serial groping suspect arrested for forcibly touching five women in Corona

Stephen Delvalle Pena, 21, allegedly pictured here, was arrested Monday morning and charged with 10 counts of forcible touching. Photo courtesy of the NYPD.

By Jonathan Sperling

A Woodhaven man accused of groping four women and a teen in rapid succession as they walked in Corona has been arrested, cops said Monday.

Stephen Delvalle Pena, 21, was arrested Monday morning and charged with 10 counts of forcible touching for groping the breasts and butt of women walking at the intersection of 55th Avenue and 99th Street on July 30. All of the incidents occurred within minutes of each other beginning at 8:15 a.m., according to police.

The first victim was a 30-year-old woman who Pena allegedly grabbed on the breast. The other four victims, ranging in age from a 17 year old to a 57 year old, were allegedly groped on the butt.

All of the victims were left uninjured.

After the series of gropings, Pena, of Woodhaven, allegedly ran away northbound on 99th Street.

Reports of misdemeanor sex crimes are on the rise in Queens, despite an overall decrease in most other crime categories, NYPD statistics show. CompStat data for precincts located in Queens North — which includes Corona — shows a 28.2 percent increase in misdemeanor sex crime reports as of the end of July 2019 compared to the same time period last year. Sex crime reports rose from 241 between Jan. 1 and July 28, 2018 to 309 as of July 28 this year.