Police: Suspect charged with raping woman inside stairwell of Upper West Side building

NEW YORK -- Police sources say the man arrested for a rape on the Upper West Side has 15 prior arrests.

CBS2 has learned it was a tip from the suspect's family that led officers to 30-year-old Jamel McIver.

Police say he followed a 21-year-old woman into a building early Saturday near West End Avenue and West 65th Street, then raped her.

Court records show McIver was also arrested in 2019, accused of forcing a teenager to perform a sex act.

Victim advocates say crimes of this nature can cause irreparable harm.

"The victims will live with that throughout their lives. There really is no getting over that kind of traumatic event," said Gwen Wright, executive director of the New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

NYPD sources say McIver was held on $250,000 bail in that 2019 case, but was then released on his own recognizance.

In:
• Upper West Side
• Manhattan