Video footage shows assault on Jew in Brooklyn

The statistics also showed a 67% increase in overall hate crimes in New York City over the same period.

By JEREMY SHARON
Orthodox man in Brooklyn 370 (photo credit: Michael Wilner)
Orthodox man in Brooklyn 370
(photo credit: Michael Wilner)
In the latest incident of a worrying trend in Brooklyn, video footage has emerged of a new assault on a Jewish individual which occurred on Tuesday.
The video footage caught by security cameras shows a hassidic Jewish man walking down the street in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn when a man runs up behind him and punches him in the head, knocking off his hat and sending him tumbling.
The incident is the second in just a few days, after another Jewish man in Williamsburg was attacked last Shabbat.
According to police and other reports, the incident involved a group of men who yelled derogatory and hateful remarks at the victim, and then one of the assailants punched the victim in the face.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individuals responsible for both of these most recent assaults.
“The shocking video footage of the assault on a Jewish man in plain daylight shows the perpetrators of these despicable acts feel emboldened,” said Evan R. Bernstein, ADL’s regional director for New York and New Jersey.
“This is the second alleged antisemitic assault we’ve seen during the past week alone. We cannot allow antisemitic assaults to become the new normal. ADL remains committed to continuing our efforts with all New Yorkers to help stop this unacceptable antisemitic violence.”
Last week, the New York Police Department reported a massive increase in antisemitic hate crimes in the city, with the data showing an 82% increase in such incidents in the first three months of 2019.
The statistics also showed a 67% increase in overall hate crimes in New York City over the same period.
The Anti-Defamation League’s 2018 Audit of Anti-Semitic Incidents, published last week as well, found that there was an even bigger rise of antisemitic hate crime in New York State of 170% from the third to the fourth quarter of 2018.