The victim, a 26-year-old man, was chased down by two individuals who then struck him with what police described as an “unknown object.”
By Algemeiner Staff
An Orthodox Jewish man was badly beaten up late on Sunday night by at least two assailants in Brooklyn, in an attack that is now being investigated by the New York City Police Department’s Hate Crimes Unit.
The attack took place just before 10.30 p.m. near the corner of Gerry Street and Bartlett Street in the borough’s Williamsburg section — home to a large Orthodox community that has frequently been targeted for antisemitic attacks over the last five years.
The victim, a 26-year-old man, was chased down by two individuals who then struck him with what police described as an “unknown object,” resulting in a laceration to his head.
Det. Annette Shelton of the NYPD’s public information unit told The Algemeiner via email that the victim was taken to hospital for emergency treatment while the attackers fled the scene in a black sedan.
Witnesses at the scene said that the victim had been beaten with sticks and that he would require major stitching. Officers from the 90th precinct were in attendance alongside personnel from the Shomrim security service and the Hatzolah emergency service.
The United Jewish Organization of Williamsburg (UJO) said it was “shocked and saddened by yet another unprovoked attack in Williamsburg.”
The group tweeted: “We hope for quick arrest, and we appeal for beefed up patrols to eradicate this trend of violence against community members.”
Other community leaders expressed similar frustration on social media.
“It doesn’t stop,” tweeted Councilman Kalman Yeger alongside the UJO’s press release announcing the attack.
Another Brooklyn Council member, Lincoln Restler, said he was “disturbed” to learn of the attack. “Hoping the victim is okay and able to fully recover,” Restler tweeted.
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso also weighed in.
“This isn’t the way we do things in Brooklyn,” Reynoso tweeted. “Here we celebrate and love each other. I hope we find those who committed this horrible attack so that we could bring them to justice.”