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New York Police record astronomical rise in antisemitic incidents for second consecutive month

Hate crimes targeting Jews in New York rose by 400 percent in February.

By The Algemeiner

Hate crimes targeting Jews in New York rose by 400 percent in February, according to new figures released by the New York Police Department on Friday, burying hopes for a let-up in the wave of antisemitism that has struck the city.

The NYPD recorded 56 hate crimes against Jews in Feb. 2022, compared with 11 in the same month the previous year. The attacks on Jews comprised about half of the total number of hate crimes in the city, which also registered nine attacks on Asians, 16 attacks on Black people and three attacks on Muslims.

Hate crimes in New York rose by 100 percent in 2021, with 183 antisemitic incidents recorded amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw both antisemitic and anti-Asian conspiracy theories gain currency on social media. The rise has continued this year, however, with 15 incidents recorded in January, compared with four during the same month of 2021.

Friday’s figures revealed an overall increase in crime in New York, with every major category seeing an increase in cases. The NYPD recorded a 56 percent increase in robberies with 1,276 cases, a 79 percent increase in grand larcenies with 3,762 cases, and grand larceny auto more than doubled from 529 in 2021 to 1,083 in 2022.

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Separately, a man accused of an antisemitic crime in Brooklyn was placed on supervised release earlier this week.

Frank Abrokwa, 37, was initially released on Wednesday after being charged with harassment for smearing human feces on the head of a woman waiting on the platform of East 241st St station in the Bronx.

Dubbed the “poop perp” by New York’s tabloids after the shocking assault, Abrokwa was immediately turned over to detectives from the Hate Crimes Unit, who recognized him as the suspect wanted for spitting on a Jewish man and making antisemitic remarks in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn. Abrowka, who is the subject of four open cases, was then given supervised release.