Authorities say Dereck Rivera-Deleon is linked to three attacks in the Manhattan park spanning more than five years.
NEW YORK CITY, NY — A man suspected in three rapes in Central Park dating to 2021 was arrested Tuesday while working at a fast-food restaurant in Miami Beach, Florida, after a multi-agency search, New York police and the U.S. Marshals Service said.
Dereck Rivera-Deleon, 30, was taken into custody Nov. 10 in the 1100 block of Washington Avenue, according to the U.S. Marshals Service. The New York Police Department said Rivera-Deleon is accused in an Oct. 24 sexual assault and is expected to face charges in two other Central Park rape cases from 2023 and 2021. The allegations have not been proven in court.
NYPD detectives assigned to the U.S. Marshals New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force tracked Rivera-Deleon to the Miami area with assistance from federal marshals in Florida and the Miami Beach Police Department. Authorities said he was working at a Burger King when officers took him into custody. Burger King told news organizations that Rivera-Deleon had worked there for less than two weeks and was no longer employed.
The most recent case began at about 8:30 p.m. Oct. 24, when a 39-year-old woman was attacked inside Central Park, according to police. Investigators said a man displayed a knife and sexually assaulted her before fleeing on foot. Emergency medical workers took the woman to a hospital in stable condition. Police later released surveillance images and video as investigators sought to identify the assailant.
The arrest followed a search that lasted more than two weeks. The U.S. Marshals Service said Rivera-Deleon was also a suspect in two separate sexual assaults in Central Park, one in 2023 and another in 2021. Authorities have released few details about those earlier cases, and the NYPD had not publicly disclosed a full set of charges against Rivera-Deleon as of early Wednesday.
Miami Beach police said DNA evidence and victim identifications connected Rivera-Deleon to the cases, according to reports citing a department statement. Investigators also determined that he had recently arrived in South Florida. Authorities have not publicly provided additional details about the forensic evidence or explained when investigators first identified Rivera-Deleon as a suspect.
The U.S. Marshals Service said the operation involved NYPD detectives, the New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force, the Florida Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force’s Miami division, the U.S. Marshals Service for the Southern District of Florida and Miami Beach police. U.S. Marshal Ricky J. Patel credited the coordination among agencies with locating Rivera-Deleon after he left New York.
Rivera-Deleon was being held in Miami-Dade County on an out-of-state fugitive warrant following his arrest, according to local jail information cited by South Florida news organizations. Officials said an extradition hearing was scheduled for Wednesday as New York authorities seek his return to face charges. It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could comment on the allegations.
The Oct. 24 attack had led police to increase patrols in and around Central Park as detectives searched for the suspect. Officials have not released further information about the women involved in the earlier cases, consistent with protections commonly given to victims of sexual assault. Authorities also have not announced when Rivera-Deleon could be returned to New York if extradition proceedings move forward.
The investigation remains active, and additional charging details are expected to emerge through New York court proceedings. Rivera-Deleon is accused of the attacks but is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Author note: Last updated November 11, 2026.