MAN, 25, ARRESTED ON RAPE CHARGES FOR SECOND TIME

New York Times/Michael S. Schmidt

Taurean Williams, a 25 year old Upper Manhattan man, was arrested on Sunday on rape charges,just a little more than two months after prosecutors dropped similar charges against him. Williams was charged with raping a 45 year old woman on the rooftop of a building at 550 West 153rdStreet on New Year's Day.  The woman told the police that the man said he was a plainclothespolice detective and displayed a badge, and said he needed to bring her to a local station to checkwhether there were any warrants out for her arrest.  Williams was arrested by the police onOctober 23, on charges that he raped and sodomized a 17 year old girl on the rooftop of the samebuilding.  Those charges were dropped and he pleaded guilty to criminal possession of stolenproperty in the fifth degree for taking the girl's cell phone.  He was awaitingsentencing.  It is unclear why the charges were dropped.
(New York)