Yonkers Man Gets 17 Years For Hate Crime In 'Heinous' Beating

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY — The 42-year-old Yonkers man who brutally beat his neighbor in an unprovoked, racially motivated attack that grabbed headlines around the world, learned his fate today.

Tammel Esco pleaded guilty to the violent assault as a hate crime in March, as part of a plea agreement. He was sentenced to 17 1/2 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision, Westchester County District Attorney Miriam Rocah announced Tuesday afternoon with attorneys for the victim standing by her side.

"Today we close a chapter on one of the most violent and shocking hate crimes that we have ever seen in Westchester County," Rocah said. "This is a case that has traumatized not only the victim and her family, but also her neighbors in the City of Yonkers, our Westchester community and the broader Asian and Pacific Islander community, really across the country."

Rocah went on to recount details of the attack that changed an innocent woman's life forever.

On March 11, shortly after 6 p.m., Esco yelled at the victim, who is of Filipino descent, that she was an "Asian b----." He then approached her from behind as she entered the vestibule of her apartment building on Riverdale Avenue in Yonkers and punched her in the head, knocking her to the ground. Esco continued to punch the victim more than 100 times, repeatedly stomped on her upper body in his construction boots, and then, in an act Rocah called "particularly vile," spit on her.

Much of the violence was caught on a security camera, graphically illustrating the fears of a community.

"Because of the viciousness and hate of Tammel Esco, I lost the place I called home for over 24 years, the place where I raised my daughters, and my longtime neighbors," The victim told the court. "As the attack happened, all I could think was, ‘Please Lord let me live, please Lord my daughters need me.’ A complete stranger heartlessly spit, beat and kicked me over 100 times just because of my heritage... My only hope is that God and the criminal justice system will see fit to make sure this never happens to any other innocent family again."

SEE ALSO:

• Tammel Esco Arrested In Brutal Beating Of Asian Woman In Yonkers
• Hate Crime Victim Remains In Stable Condition After Attack
• Grand Jury Hands Down Hate Crime Indictment Against Tammel Esco
• Esco Guilty In Brutal Hate Crime Attack On 67-Year Asian Woman In Yonkers

She told the judge that she still suffers from serious and lingering health effects as a result of the attack. Her attorneys asked that further details of her health not be made public out of respect for the family's privacy.

"In 27 years of policing, this was one of the most violent and one of the most heinous crimes I've ever witnessed," Yonkers Police Commissioner Christopher Sapienza said of the attack.