Pardon Me For Asking: Incident In Carroll Park's Ladies Room Illustrates That Caution Is Advisable

A warning was posted on the Bococa Parents' Yahoo Group on Wednesday regarding an incident that occurred in Carroll Park on Saturday. A man was exposing himself in the women's bathroom and startled someone who walked in on him. The Park's Department workers notified the 76th Precinct immediately, but the man fled before police arrived.

I reached out to Deputy Inspector Corey of the 76th Precinct in an email to get further information regarding this incident. He wrote back:

We received a 911 call from a Parks Department employee at 12:15 p.m
on Saturday, reporting a man in the ladies room of Carroll Park
exposing himself. The officers arrived on the scene at 12:17 p.m.
The suspect had already left the location, and despite a diligent
search, the officers were unable to locate him. He was described as a
Hispanic male wearing a maroon dress shirt and black pants. If anyone
saw this man and can add to the description or possibly identify him,
they should call Detective Paul Grudzinski at 718-834-3207.

We normally increase our patrols around the neighborhood parks in the
warmer weather, and Carroll Park is certainly no exception. We
encourage people to immediately report suspicious behavior, so that we
can investigate it. In this instance, the officers arrived within 2
minutes of the 911 call. Lone adults loitering in a playground filled
with children certainly fit this criteria and should be reported to
911.

We also constantly remind people to be mindful of their personal
property, whether in the park, supermarket, restaurant or elsewhere,
and not to leave items visible in their cars. The email you forwarded
me mentioned "stroller purse snatchers". We have had no incidents of
this in 2010 in or around Carroll Park, but did have a few in 2009.
Also, on Saturday 6/5, there were 2 incidents in Red Hook Park in
which unattended bags were stolen.

Working together, we can continue to reduce crime in the community.

Deputy Inspector Kenneth E. Corey
Commanding Officer, 76th Precinct

Yes, Carroll Park is generally very safe, but incidents happen occasionally. It certainly is advisable to be vigilant at all times. Most importantly, don't take any chances and accompany your child to the bathroom each and every time.

And please let your nanny or babysitter know about this incident as well.