Police Say Black Man Raped Woman Because She's White

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A black Pittsburgh man has been jailed on charges he raped a woman at knifepoint because she's white.

Forty-seven-year-old Lee Harris was arrested early Saturday on charges including ethnic intimidation and rape in the alleged Sept. 18 assault.

The woman told police she was walking home about 12:30 a.m. when she passed Harris who then began walking with her. The woman tells police that had occurred before.

But, this time, the woman says, Harris pulled a knife, put it to her neck, and forced her into an abandoned building where she was raped. When the woman asked Harris why he was attacking her, police say he responded, "Because you're white."

Online court records don't list an attorney for Harris, who remained jailed Monday and faces a Nov. 15 preliminary hearing.

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