NYC Tourist Raped [PHOTO]: Young Australian Woman Sexually Assaulted in Alleyway Near Lavo Nightclub, Attacker Still Unidentified

Law-enforcement confirms that a young, NYC tourist from Australia was dragged into a dark alleyway near the popular Lavo nightclub in Midtown and raped early Sunday morning (Feb. 11). The 20-year-old victim was intoxicated when she left the nightclub hotspot (located at East 58th Street between Park and Madison avenues in Manhattan) at around 3:35 a.m. on Sunday. She stumbled into a cab, but got into an argument with the driver and promptly exited the vehicle. That's when she was grabbed from behind and dragged into the alleyway and sexually assaulted. The young tourist's attacker still remains unidentified.

Sources tell the NYPD that for some reason after getting into the taxi after a fun night out, the young woman (whose name was not released) began arguing with the cab driver. She quickly got out of the car and once back on the street, she was quickly grabbed from behind. The assaulter dragged her into a nearby alleyway and proceeded to rape her.

Following the assault, the woman quickly hopped into another cab and text messaged her friend that she'd just been raped. Police were then called, and they met the young woman at a location on the west side, where she was staying for the night.

Because she was intoxicated, the young tourist couldn't provide police with the exact location where the assault took place.

Cops recently released this sketch of the suspected attacker. He is described as a middle-aged man (35-40 years old), about 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds with dark clothing. He was wearing a dark skull cap at the time of the assault.

According to NBC New York, people who live and work in the Midtown area were surprised after hearing about the attack. According to Joe Agate, a deliveryman who runs a route near the nightclub, the area is usually very quite in the early morning hours - "It's a good neighborhood, it's a high-class neighborhood."

Anyone with further information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit tips to the Crime Stoppers website, or by texting tips to CRIMES (274637) and entering (TIP577).