E. Boston women urged to be extra watchful

• Tweet

BOSTON, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- Boston police have been warning women in the East Boston neighborhood to be careful following a series of assaults.

Kelly Nee, deputy superintendent in the Bureau of Investigative Services, said patrols have been increased and officers were stationed at two subway stations Wednesday and Thursday to provide information to women on staying safe, The Boston Globe reported.

"They're telling them don't get distracted with headphones, cellphones," Nee said. "If you can walk with somebody, do so or have somebody come meet you."

The most recent attack occurred at about 1 a.m. Wednesday. A woman said she was pushed down by someone who came up behind her, but a bystander scared the attacker off.

The string of attacks began in August when a woman reported being forced into a car and raped. Two women were attacked and robbed in an invasion of their home in September. They said the assailant tried to rape them.

There were three attacks, all in the same area with two only a few minutes apart, Sept. 25.

Nee said there is little evidence in many of the assaults because women were grabbed from behind. She said investigators are unsure how many of the attacks are related.

While police are concerned about the attacks, overall crime has dropped 2 percent in East Boston and the neighborhood is one of the safest in the city, Nee said. East Boston, separated from the rest of the city by the harbor, has been a home to successive groups of immigrants and has some areas that are becoming gentrified.