Suspect Arrested in Connection with Rape of 70-Year-Old Bronx Woman

Police have arrested 28-year-old Reginald Bellot on charges stemming from a July 27 rape of a 70-year-old Bronx woman. Bellot faces counts of rape, strangulation, menacing and unlawful imprisonment, predatory sexual assault, and a criminal sex act.

On Tuesday morning, Bellot, a member of the Crips gang and Bronx native, was arrested for allegedly making his way into the victim’s apartment building and raping her at gunpoint. The July attack took place at 2:00 a.m. when the victim was attacked from behind in the hallway of her apartment building. She had just entered the building and the alleged rapist is said to have forced the victim into a stairwell by gunpoint where he carried out the act.

The perpetrator was wearing both a black and a red mask as well as a do-rag when the attack occurred. Bellot was released on parole in February after serving three years in prison for attempted robbery and possession of prison contraband.

Do you recognize him? He is wanted for a gunpoint rape of a 70 year old woman that occurred on Tuesday, 7/27/21 at 2am in the Belmont section of the @NYPD48Pct . He was seen wearing two plastic masks- 1 red, 1 black. 📞Call 718-378-8921@NYPDTips pic.twitter.com/oyT1J5E508

— NYPD Special Victims (@NYPDSVU) August 3, 2021

The victim waited nearly a week to report the rape when she went to the hospital on August 2 to assess her injuries. On August 3, police released surveillance video from the apartment building in hopes of identifying the perpetrator with the assistance of the public.

Some of the victim’s neighbors have expressed their concerns regarding the rape. One neighbor, Virginia George, wondered, “why would you do that? That’s your mother, that’s your grandmother.” Another neighbor explained, “to be in your own neighborhood and for someone to attack you like that, that’s very vicious. So that goes to show you there’s something wrong with him.”

A third neighbor, Jonathon Oberko, stated, “that’s bad, very bad. If I should catch somebody like that, I would hold the person until the police come.”

Bellot is being held in Westchester County Jail without bail as he awaits his arraignment. The arraignment will take place in the New York state Bronx County Criminal Court.