Bronx man accused of raping boy, 13, in stairwell of NYCHA building after pair spoke online

A Bronx man is accused of raping a 13-year-old boy in the stairwell of a public housing building after the pair met online, prosecutors said.

Ishmael Francis, 29, was indicted on Monday on two counts of second-degree rape and related charges after carrying out the sick attack on the young teen last month, the Bronx District Attorney’s Office said.

Francis and the boy exchanged messages around 11 p.m. on Sept. 18 before the suspect went to the Sotomayor Houses in Soundview where the victim lives and lurked in the stairwell, prosecutors alleged.

When the boy walked down that stairwell to throw out the trash, the suspect allegedly sexually assaulted him, the district attorney’s office said.

He then allegedly stole the victim’s phone and fled after he heard the 13-year-old’s family call out for him.  

The child was taken to Jacobi Hospital for treatment and the alleged perp was arrested days later on Sept. 24 after the online messages helped identify him, according to the district attorney’s office.

“This defendant is charged with raping a 13-year-old boy whom he engaged online and then went to his building,” District Attorney Darcel Clark said in a statement.

“This child has suffered trauma and we will do all we can to help him through this ordeal.”

Francis is also facing charges of two counts of third-degree rape, two counts of sexual misconduct, endangering the welfare of a child and fourth-degree grand larceny.

Supervised release was extended for Francis during a court appearance on Monday in the Bronx. His next court date is Jan. 7, 2025.