A magazine writer accused of breaking into a woman’s apartment on Halloween while disguised as a firefighter and sexually abusing her for hours was returned from Tennessee on Monday night to face criminal charges in the attack.
A handcuffed Peter Braunstein, who was captured on the University of Memphis campus last week after six weeks on the run, was taken into a New York police station at about 10 p.m. He appeared exhausted and confused and refused to answer questions.
Braunstein, 41, had appeared without a lawyer earlier in the day at a brief court hearing in Memphis and agreed not to fight extradition, said Shelby County assistant prosecutor Tom Henderson.
Braunstein was to be arraigned Monday night or Tuesday morning, said Manhattan district attorney’s office spokeswoman Barbara Thompson. An arrest warrant charges him with sex abuse, kidnapping, robbery and burglary, she said.
Braunstein, a freelance fashion writer for New York publications, was arrested Friday while walking across the University of Memphis campus. Authorities said he stabbed himself in the neck with a knife several times while being arrested, but Henderson said he showed no signs of serious injury or emotional distress.
He is accused of breaking into a New York woman’s apartment on Halloween while dressed as a city firefighter. Authorities say the woman was overpowered, tied up and sexually assaulted for up to 12 hours.
The attack drew heavy media coverage in New York, and Braunstein was featured on the national TV show “America’s Most Wanted.”
Braunstein was spotted by a university office worker who recognized him from TV reports.
