Tensions erupted in Brooklyn Criminal Court on Saturday night when relatives of a 12-year-old girl allegedly raped in a Williamsburg housing complex confronted the suspect, 27-year-old Eric McMichael, during his arraignment.

The hearing broke down into shouting as family members cursed at the accused and the judge before officers cleared the room.

“Another outburst and everyone is leaving,” Judge Orville Reynolds warned during the proceedings.

⚠️WARNING: This post describes the rape of a minor.

A 27-year-old man with a prior rape conviction has been arrested for allegedly raping a 12-year-old girl in the stairwell of her Brooklyn public housing building. Eric McMichael was arrested Friday, a day after the attack.… pic.twitter.com/cQA5KrmJ5y — True Crime Updates (@TrueCrimeUpdat) November 8, 2025

McMichael, who is homeless, faces multiple felony charges after prosecutors said he attacked the girl in the stairwell of the Cooper Houses building on Morgan Avenue near Jackson Street on Thursday night.

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Prosecutors said McMichael threatened to shoot the victim if she refused to follow him.

According to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, McMichael was out on parole at the time of the alleged assault for a 2013 robbery conviction.

Prosecutors stated that McMichael approached the girl in the lobby, told her, “I need you to come with me, or I’ll shoot you,” and forced her into the stairwell before committing the attack.

Brooklyn Assistant District Attorney Jordan Rossman described the incident during the arraignment.

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“An eyewitness encountered them and saw the defendant with no pants on, and the complainant, who made an outcry for help,” Rossman said.

“The defendant fled. The eyewitness brought the complainant upstairs to her family’s apartment where her mother was, and the mother saw the child bleeding from her legs.”

Rossman said the child’s mother immediately contacted police and took her daughter to the hospital, where she was treated and reported to be in stable condition.

Authorities said McMichael was identified in surveillance footage recorded at a nearby laundromat.

His parole officer recognized him in the video, leading to his arrest on Friday afternoon. Prosecutors said McMichael admitted to being in the lobby of the building after his arrest.

“He admitted to being in the lobby of the building, encountering a woman, talking to her, kissing her, hugging her, grabbing her, pushing her and refusing to let her go home until somebody came and saw what happened,” Rossman told the court.

🚨BREAKING: 4-time convicted felon on parole for rape and released under @GovKathyHochul just arrested for raping a 12-year-old girl in NYC.

Police say Eric McMichael grabbed her, pushed her to the ground and brutally raped her and should have never been back on the streets. pic.twitter.com/zzdsBiEGtO — Dapper Detective (@Dapper_Det) November 8, 2025

McMichael now faces a long list of charges, including four counts of first-degree rape, two counts of second-degree rape, second- and third-degree burglary as sexually motivated felonies, two counts of sexual misconduct, forcible touching, two counts of first-degree sexual abuse, second- and third-degree sexual abuse, second-degree criminal trespass, and endangering the welfare of a child.

He is being held without bail and is scheduled to return to court on Thursday.

Court documents and prior reports show McMichael’s criminal history spans several years.

In October 2019, he was arrested after allegedly stealing a 29-year-old woman’s phone and raping her at knifepoint in an abandoned Staten Island building.

Police said he removed screws from a door to break into the location where the attack occurred.

McMichael pleaded guilty and was ordered to undergo mental health treatment, according to the Staten Island Advance.

In August 2023, McMichael was arrested again for allegedly pretending to have a gun while attempting to carjack a livery cab driver.

Before his most recent arrest, he had been living in a homeless shelter on Clay Street.

The case has prompted public outrage over how a repeat violent offender remained free under parole supervision.

Prosecutors said the investigation is ongoing as authorities continue reviewing evidence and additional witness statements.

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