Accused Central Park Rapist's History of Attacking Old Women The man accused of raping and robbing a 73-year-old birdwatcher in New York's Central Park has a lengthy criminal record and a history of attacking elderly women. David Mitchell, 42, was arrested on Thursday evening and charged early this morning with rape, criminal sex act, robbery and assault, according to court documents. Mitchell has a chilling history of attacking elderly women. As an 18-year-old in 1989, Mitchell was charged with sexually assaulting and murdering 86-year-old Annie Parks in West Virginia, according to news reports from the time. When a plea deal in which he would have pleaded guilty was rejected by prosecutors, the case went to trial and Mitchell was acquitted. Months later, he was accused of breaking into the home of a woman in her 70s and sexually assaulting her. He served eight years for the robbery charge and the sexual assault charge was dropped as part of a plea deal. He later served another eight years in prison for a kidnapping in Virginia, according to ABC News' New York affiliate WABC. After the attack, police released surveillance footage of Mitchell leaving the park. On Thursday evening, three rookie cops recognized Mitchell on the street in New York and apprehended him, according to WABC. He spat at reporters on his way out of court. Mitchell is being represented by an attorney from New York's Legal Aid office. The office did not respond to request for comment. The victim said Mitchell's attack was not random. About two weeks ago, the victim caught Mitchell allegedly committing a lewd act in the park and took his photo. He confronted her, but she refused to give him her camera. "This was a revenge attack," the victim told ABC News' New York station WABC. All I was doing was praying to stay alive. The 73-year-old birdwatcher and photographer was in the park on Wednesday when she said the incident occurred around 11:50 a.m. When the attack was over, the victim said, "He pushed me into the dirt on my face, and he said, 'You stay there. You count to 100.' The woman was treated at a hospital and released. She has two black eyes, bruises on her arms and legs and a broken finger. But she said the attack will not prevent her from returning to her beloved park. "It's majestic, it's very soothing and I'm not going to stop," she said. Nobody is going to take that pleasure away from me. This was just one animal.