Same Group Attacks 2 Jewish Men Within Minutes In Brooklyn: Cops

CROWN HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — A group of men who attacked a Hasidic Jewish man in Crown Heights last week also beat another Hasidic Jewish man with a chair and stick just minutes later, cops said.

In the first attack — one of at least seven recent anti-Semitic incidents known about last week that led to added cops in Brooklyn — the group of at least six men punched a Hasidic Jewish man in the back of the head as he walked down Union Street around 5:20 p.m. on Dec. 24, police said. Another man in the group recorded the attack on his phone before they crossed the street and ran away on Albany Avenue, police said.

The same group then attacked another Hasidic Jewish man that was walking on Albany Avenue just blocks away at Lincoln Place, about a half hour after the first attack, police said.

One of the men struck the Jewish man in the head with a chair and punched him the face as the group walked by, police said. About three others then run after the Jewish man, one of them using a stick to threaten him, according to video and police.

Both of the men refused medical attention.

The attacks came as New York City officials were trying to deal with a spike in anti-Semitic incidents the last few weeks, most of which happened in Brooklyn.

The attacks led Mayor Bill de Blasio to announce a new anti-hate plan, including extra cops in several Brooklyn neighborhoods with large Jewish populations, a new anti-hate curriculum for city schools and that neighborhood safety coalitions would be started to try and prevent more attacks.

Anyone with information in regard to the identity of these individuals is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM, or on Twitter @NYPDTips. All calls are strictly confidential.