Hunt for Lower East Side rapist

NEW YORK (AP) -- The NYPD is looking for a man they say raped one woman and accosted two others in Manhattan. Police say it all happened Thursday morning.

Investigators say the man followed a 33-year-old woman into an apartment building around 5:40 a.m. and tried to rape and rob her. The victim was able to fight him off and he fled the scene.

Two hours later, police say the man followed a 24-year-old woman into her building and took her identification card before fleeing the scene.

At about 8:45 a.m., police say a 40-year-old woman was entering her apartment when the same man emerged from the stairway and talked with her. Authorities say he forced her into the apartment and raped her. The woman was treated at a hospital and released.