Man tricks hotel clerk into giving him key card, then rapes ex-girlfriend, NY cops say

A man tricked a hotel receptionist into giving him a key, then he raped his ex-girlfriend, New York officials said.

The 36-year-old woman rented a room at the Comfort Inn and Suites in Clay after her birthday celebration at a restaurant nearby, according to a statement by state police.

The woman was having her boyfriend spend the night with her March 9, troopers said.

The suspect, later identified as Pierre Reese, was able to get the room’s key card by lying to the hotel’s receptionist at about 6 a.m. the next morning, officers said.

About five hours later, at 11 a.m., the woman’s new boyfriend was getting a soda from the hotel’s vending machine when Reese, the woman’s ex, entered the room and raped her, troopers said.

The woman’s boyfriend tried to get into the room but was locked out, officers said.

Soon after, Reese left the room and “physically confronted the new boyfriend,” officials said. The fight prompted a 911 call.

Comfort Inn and Suites did not immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on March 14.

Detectives later learned Reese had a “history of stalking the victim,” police said.

Reese was arrested and booked into the Onondaga County Justice Center on a rape charge, police said.

Clay is about a 10-mile drive north from Syracuse.

This story was originally published March 14, 2024 at 4:34 PM with the headline "Man tricks hotel clerk into giving him key card, then rapes ex-girlfriend, NY cops say."