Edited by: TJVNews.com
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez on Wednesday announced that a 41-year-old Staten Island man has been convicted of charges of felony attempted assault, misdemeanor assault and menacing for a 2018 unprovoked attack against three Jewish men wearing Hasidic clothing that took place in Borough Park on October 14, 2018, according to a report on the Yeshiva World News web site.
The District Attorney said that, according to the evidence, on October 14, 2018, at approximately 7:25 a.m., the defendant was driving a cab on 13th Avenue and 44th Street in Borough Park, Brooklyn, as was reported by YWN. As he drove past a Hasidic man, the defendant allegedly swerved his car as if to hit him, causing the man to run away so he wouldn’t get struck, the report continued.
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Farrukh Afzal, 41, of Mariners Harbor, Staten Island, the report indicated. Sources revealed that Afzal is of the Muslim faith. He was arrested and arraigned on November 15, 2018 for the October incident.
Hamodia reported that video surveillance footage showed that Afzal drove for another block and a half and stopped, exited his cab and ran towards another Lipa Schwartz, who was standing at the corner of 13th Avenue and 46th Street holding his tallis bag. Hamodia reported that the driver assaulted him, beating him for approximately twenty-five seconds, as well as causing lacerations and bruising to the face and body. YWN also reported that as the defendant ran towards the victim, he did not attack a delivery man who was not wearing Hasidic garb, but was closer to him, the evidence showed. A third Hasidic man tried to intervene and was chased by the defendant. Schwartz was treated at a local hospital, the report indicated.
On Wednesday, Afzal was convicted of second-degree attempted assault, third-degree assault and third-degree menacing following a jury trial before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Evelyn Laporte, as was reported by YWN. He was acquitted of hate crime enhancements that were attached to each of those three counts. Afzal faces up to four years in prison when he is sentenced on September 15, 2022.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Jonathan Hagler and Assistant District Attorney Isabel Hernandez of the District Attorney’s Grey Zone Trial Bureau, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Robert Walsh, Bureau Chief.
District Attorney Gonzalez said on Wednesday that, “this defendant’s violent conduct has no place in Brooklyn, where we value diversity and welcome all religions. He has now been held accountable and today’s verdict should send a strong message to anyone who would commit this kind of outrageous and unprovoked attack,” according to the YWN report.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez today announced that a 41-year-old Farrukh Afzal of Staten Island man has been convicted of charges of felony attempted assault, misdemeanor assault and menacing for a 2018 unprovoked attack against three Jewish men that took place on October 14, 2018 in Borough Park.
