Yorktown police identified a 19-year-old male student from BOCES Fox Meadow School as the person being accused of attacking young kids at Downing Park.

Detectives say Tyreek Lewis, of Yonkers, faces charges of assault in the incident.

Police say Lewis is a Fox Meadow High School student.

In a seperate incident, Lewis was charged with criminal mischief for damage he caused at while in custody at the Yorktown police headquarters.

The school says he left school grounds without permission but they immediately called police, who followed him.

News 12 has learned that the Lewis's arrest came after Yorktown police said they got a report that an unknown male was physically attacking young children at the park.

Yorktown police said they responded quickly and got a physical description of the alleged attacker from eyewitnesses.

They said members of the department were then able to capture the student as he fled into the wooded area of FDR Park.

Police say that they notified Yorktown Central School District about the incident out of an abundance of caution.

Students from Yorktown High School said they saw the police response.

They told News 12 that they were shocked to learn what exactly had happened.

"I'm going to be honest, I thought it was like a grown man just doing that. I didn't expect it to be like someone who's like potentially I could have went to school with," one student said. "So, it's horrifying."

Police said the injuries that the students suffered in the attack are not life-threatening.

In response, Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES released the following statement:

“Fox Meadow High School provides a safe, nurturing learning environment for students with a variety of learning styles and needs. On March 27, 2024, an incident occurred involving a student attending the PNW BOCES’ Fox Meadow High School that prompted the student to leave the school grounds without permission. Staff members immediately informed local police and followed the student who was never out of their line of sight. Yorktown Police responded and took the student into custody for allegedly inappropriate conduct in a local community. Students and staff at Fox Meadow were never in jeopardy during the incident.”

It is not clear what prompted the attack but police say it was an isolated incident.

Lewis was being held at the county jail as of Thursday.