Police in Albany, New York, have arrested an illegal immigrant from Turkey after he allegedly abducted and raped a 15-year-old girl.
Last week, officials arrested 21-year-old Sakir Akkan and charged him with first degree rape. He was arraigned on June 19 and pleaded not guilty.
Police allege Akkan abducted the victim shortly after midnight on May 14 after she left a group home without authorization.
The Albany Times Union reports the girl “told police that Akkan, whom she was later able to identify from a photo lineup, drove up to her in a green Toyota Prius, got out and was clutching a metal rod as he threatened to beat her if she didn’t get in his vehicle.”
“A police report indicates she suffered scratches on her legs as she tried to resist the attack,” the report continued. “After the alleged sexual assault, Akkan let the girl out of his car and drove away; she ran to a nearby residence for help. Security cameras helped police identify and trace the movements of Akkan both before and after the incident. He had a New Jersey driver’s license and his car had New Jersey license plates that were registered to a different Toyota Prius. It’s unclear if the plates were stolen.”
However, the incident and the handling of Akkan’s arrest have sparked allegations of a cover-up due to the suspect’s immigration status.
The Times Union reports Akkan was arrested seven months ago in San Diego after he crossed the border illegally. The paper notes it was not known why he was in New York’s Capitol Region, and that he was unemployed at the time of his arrest.
“Interviews with multiple people familiar with the investigation, and also information gleaned from police reports and court records, raises questions about why Albany police did not issue a news release or warn the public after the young girl was abducted as she walked on New Scotland Avenue in what appears to have been a random attack,” the paper notes.
Officer Megan Craft, a spokeswoman for the Albany Police Department, told reporters “further investigation by detectives, some inconsistencies were found regarding this incidents” when asked why the department did not notify the public of the rape after it occurred.
She noted officials at the time “determined that there was no immediate threat to public safety during that time. Had there been a perceived threat to the public, appropriate information would have been released.”
“As far as the release or sexual assault reports and arrests that do not pose a threat to the public are generally not released in order to prevent retraumatization of the victim,” she added.
Yet, the Times Union pointed out an inconvenient fact for the department as it said the Albany police released a notice on June 5 “a day after a 17-year-old boy in Albany was charged with forcibly raping a 15-year-old girl while pressing a handgun against her head,” which said led to an “almost immediate arrest.”
While Craft insisted the department tends not to release information unless it believes there was a threat, an unnamed official said to the Times Union, “If an asylum-seeker snatching a kid (off a public street) and raping them and remaining on the loose is not a threat to public safety, then what is a threat to public safety.”
In a statement, Albany County Legislator Frank Mauriello accused officials of trying to cover-up migrant crimes.
Meanwhile, Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin posted on X, “A 15 yr old girl raped by an ILLEGAL ALIEN in the city of Albany and the public doesn’t get notified? We are suppose to believe this wasn’t covered up by the city administration? Bullsh*t. This is a national story. What the hell went on here?”
Meanwhile, New York State Senator Rob Ort (R) wrote said, “It’s incredibly disturbing that a young girl was abducted and raped by an illegal immigrant a month ago and the public is just learning of it. It reeks of NYDems playing politics w/safety. When will enough be enough? End the dangerous sanctuary policies!”
In a statement, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) said, “Joe Biden’s heinous failed open border policies have led to violent crimes, rapes, and murders of innocent Americans. This latest horrific news of an illegal alien violently raping an innocent 15 year old girl in Albany is yet another horrific example of the catastrophic inhumane consequences of Joe Biden’s failed Far Left Democrat open border policies.”
Despite the allegations of a cover Albany Eric Hawkins insisted his department did not know about the suspect’s immigration status until after his arraignment last week.
