Police seeking seven men in park attacks

NEW YORK - Police distributed photos Wednesday of seven men they believe participated in the attacks on 24 girls and women in Central Park - stripping, fondling and sexually abusing some of the victims as they moved in a pack in broad daylight.

At a news conference, Police Commissioner Howard Safir denied that the officers assigned to the Puerto Rican Day parade on neighboring Fifth Avenue Sunday were told to relax public drinking regulations to avoid tension between officers and the mostly Hispanic crowd. Several witnesses and some victims have alleged that the attackers were drunk, and that some reeked of marijuana.

''There are no special parameters for the Puerto Rican Day parade,'' Safir said. ''We police each parade based on the number of people and the number of spectators.''

Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said Wednesday that he met with seven of the victims and they described the attacks, which he termed horrendous. He said 21 of the attacks occurred in Central Park, three others at the Puerto Rican Day parade.

So far, only two men have been arrested and charged - police believe up to 40 men took part in the attacks that targeted, among others, a 14-year-old girl, a French couple on their honeymoon, an Associated Press reporter, and three British women.

Police on Wednesday questioned at least two men whose photos were culled from 10 videotapes detectives have received from TV stations and private citizens.

Police are offering a $2,000 reward for the arrest and indictment of any suspect, and the city is offering a $10,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of any suspect.

The videotapes show the horror and speed of the attacks - girls and women surrounded by men dousing them with water, then grabbing and pushing them. Victims are seen crying and trying to cover themselves as they walk away.

At least two victims have said police officers rebuffed them when they asked for help, and the NYPD has launched an internal investigation into the allegations.