A horror movie scene played out in real life as a woman struggled with keys to unlock her apartment seconds before closing the door on a stalker sprinting down the hallway.
The tense moment was captured on video at a New York apartment building as the woman returned home in the early hours of the morning.
Police are offering a $3500 reward for the man they say followed the 50-year-old to her Bronx home at 2am local time on 23 September.
Video released Wednesday shows the woman look toward the stalker before she escapes into her apartment and shuts the door.
The man struggles with the locked door in an attempt to force his way in before ringing the doorbell and punching the air in apparent frustration.
He turns and leaves the apartment near the corner of 168 Street and Sherman Avenue.
NYPD Crime Stoppers says the man, who is tall, Black and was wearing blue jeans and a white tank top at the time of the attack, was following the woman in an attempt to break into her house.
“WANTED for an Attempted Burglary… Individual followed female victim and attempted to gain access to her apartment,” they said in a tweet.
