A New York landlord with an alleged decades-long history of sexually harassing women was arrested in connection with the attempted rape of a prospective tenant, according to police.
The arrest stems from June 4, 2025, when Douglas S. Waterbury, of Oswego, picked up a woman who believed that he was going to take her to see a residential property, New York State Police said in a Tuesday, March 3, news release.
The woman had been looking for a new place to live and reached out to Waterbury after someone referred his phone number to her, according to police.
When Waterbury picked the woman up, “instead of driving to a residence, he allegedly drove to an unoccupied commercial building in the town of Scriba,” police said.
At the empty building, Waterbury exposed himself and demanded oral sex from the woman, according to police.
After the woman refused, Waterbury allegedly tried to bribe her into performing oral sex in exchange for money, police said.
The woman kept refusing, resulting in Waterbury taking her home, according to police.
After she pursued criminal charges against Waterbury, Oswego County prosecutors said Waterbury tried to offer her money again so the charges could “go away,” Syracuse.com reported.
State police arrested Waterbury on March 3 after he was indicted on criminal charges stemming from the June incident, according to police.
He is charged with attempted bribing a witness, attempted third-degree rape, and third-degree patronizing a person for prostitution, court records viewed by Us Weekly show.
Waterbury pleaded not guilty to the charges at an arraignment held on March 3, according to court records.
His defense attorney, Stephen James Sercu, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Us on Thursday, March 5.
Waterbury was previously accused of sexually harassing several female tenants and potential tenants in Oswego and the surrounding area for nearly 30 years in two Fair Housing Act lawsuits filed against him, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
In August 2019, the Justice Department announced that Waterbury and co-defendants named in the litigation agreed to pay $850,000 to settle the suits.
In one, he was ordered to pay $400,000 in monetary damages, according to the Justice Department. Nine additional women tied to the other lawsuit were awarded $400,000.
Additionally, Waterbury and his co-defendants had to pay a $50,000 civil penalty, officials said.
One of the lawsuits accused Waterbury of subjecting “former tenants and potential tenants” to “sexual harassment, including unwanted sexual intercourse, sexual advances and comments, groping or other touching of their bodies without consent, and offers to reduce or eliminate security deposits and rent in exchange for sexual contact,” the Justice Department said.
In addition to the lawsuits and his March 3 arrest, Waterbury has an alleged criminal history related to other incidents, Oswego County News Now reported.
He was recently arrested in connection with allegedly stalking a woman in Oswego in December, according to the outlet.
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