The NYPD has arrested and charged an individual with a hate crime for allegedly assaulting a Jewish woman by punching her in the face at a subway station in Manhattan.
Police say Christopher D’Aguiar, 28, attacked a 29-year-old woman inside the 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue station on Oct. 14. He allegedly told her that he punched her because “you are Jewish.”
According to police, the victim sustained only minor injuries.
Police have charged D’Aguiar with assault as a hate crime, aggravated harassment, assault, and harassment.
Amid a surge in hate crimes, many of them violent, across New York City, the recent attack was fueled by hate and targeted the Jewish community. Shockingly, almost 60% of the incidents were aimed at the Jewish community, which is experiencing a spike in attacks during the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
During a press conference on Tuesday, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny reported that the city has seen 51 instances of hate crimes since October 9th. Out of these, 30 were targeted towards Jewish individuals.
According to him, in 2022, the NYPD reported only six anti-Jewish incidents during the same period.
According to Kenny, the recent incidents in the city do not seem to be related to the pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
According to him, attacks have taken place in random situations, like when people cross paths on a subway or bus. He clarified that these incidents weren’t planned. In contrast, protests are planned events and no hate crime has been observed in connection with any protest so far.
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