A 12-year-old boy is facing hate crime charges in connection with a violent attack on two Hasidic Jewish boys in Brooklyn earlier this month. The incident, captured on video, occurred at Franklin and Myrtle avenues in Bedford-Stuyvesant.
The pre-teen was arrested and charged with aggravated harassment and assault, both classified as hate crimes. The attack took place on May 12 in the evening as the Jewish boys were playing in front of a condo building on Franklin Avenue.
According to the video obtained by Williamsburg 365 News, the suspect, riding a Citi Bike, approached the group of boys and began assaulting them. The attacker was identified as either a light-skinned male black or male Hispanic.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny described the incident, stating that the perpetrator demanded the boys to get off the sidewalk before physically assaulting two of them while the others ran to safety.
The attacker pushed one boy to the ground and then knocked another to the pavement, proceeding to kick and stomp on him. The victims sustained minor injuries on the backs of their heads.
The arrested youngster is being charged as a juvenile. Despite initial reports suggesting no explicitly antisemitic remarks were made during the attack, hate crime charges were filed, with the Hate Crime Task Force investigating the case.
Authorities have not disclosed the specific reason for the hate crime charges, but the incident has sparked concerns and led to the involvement of the Hate Crime Task Force.
