Police are searching for a registered sex offender wanted in a disturbing case of stalking that has lasted for months targeting an Upper East Side woman. The suspect, 58-year-old Kenneth Hoyt, has harassed the 27-year-old both online and in-person, police say, approaching and flashing her on the street.
It was around 11:30 pm back on January 10th, when police say Hoyt snuck up on the young woman from behind while she was in front of 393 East 83rd Street, near First Avenue, then ripped open his coat, exposing his genitals.
Investigators say Hoyt is a Level 3 sex offender — the designation used for those at the highest risk for committing another offense — and has a long history of lewd behavior with multiple arrests in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
Court records show he’s also been in-and-out of federal prison several times over the past decade for failing to register as a sex offender, as well as violating the conditions of his supervised release.
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Hoyt’s own lawyer wrote in a sentencing memo to the court in 2013, explaining that his client “has a long documented history of mental and emotional health problems.”
“For example, in 1993, the Nevada State Department of Corrections concluded that Hoyt had ‘…serious mental issues’ contributing to his sexual misconduct and that he exhibited the propensity to act out violently against his victims,” wrote federal public defender Philip Weinstein.
Hoyt was most recently released from federal custody in May 2022 and lists an address in the Eastchester section of The Bronx as his primary residence.
According to New York State’s sex offender registry, Hoyt was originally placed on the list back in 1987, when he was 22, following a felony sex offense where he victimized a 13-year-old girl.
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In addition to flashing his victim on the Upper East Side, police say the 58-year-old has also undertaken an ongoing stalking campaign on social media, repeatedly making unwanted contact with the woman and going as far as “detailing her movements throughout the day.”
Investigators tell Upper East Site that Hoyt and his 27-year-old victim have no prior relationship and that the online harassment is ongoing.
Hoyt is described as standing 5’9” tall, weighing 180 pounds, with hazel eyes and long blonde hair. His most recent mugshot is from last spring.
If you spot Kenneth Hoyt or have any information that could help investigators, you’re asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-8477.
