NYPD Asking Public for Help Identifying Suspects in Trio of Anti-Semitic Incidents

NEW YORK – With members of New York City’s Jewish community continuing to find themselves targeted for violence, the NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force has been inundated with work, releasing footage of multiple suspects being sought over the past several days.

Police released footage on December 9th of a suspect sought in an attack on a 66 year old man at a Duane Reade store located in Manhattan’s financial district that had taken place four days earlier. The New York Post (bit.ly/41jtayA) reported that the incident took place just before 9:30 AM when the victim accidentally bumped into the suspect in the doorway of the John Street Duane Reade located between Nassau Street and Broadway. The suspect, a balding African American man with facial hair, and dressed in purple and black The North Face jacket, a yellow and white striped shirt, dark pants and black and white sneakers, punched the victim in the head while making an anti-Semitic statement and fleeing the scene. Police described the man as being approximately 40 years, 5 feet 7 inches tall and weight 170 pounds.

Just one day earlier, the NYPD released footage of a suspect sought for assaulting an obviously Jewish man in front of his Crown Heights home while making anti-Jewish statements on the first night of Chanukah. Joshua Merenfeld told Fox 5 News (bit.ly/3th2iCs) that he had gone outside his apartment building to smoke a cigarette at approximately 7 PM when he was attacked from behind. Merenfeld was left bruised and bloodied after being knocked to the ground and repeatedly kicked in the back while his attacker yelled anti-Semitic slurs.

The NYPD is looking for an African American man who was wearing a black do-rag and a black jacket and pants covered in colorful graffiti. The suspect’s face is covered with a purple scarf with a multicolored plaid design in the images shared by the NYPD.

Footage released on the same day shows a man standing outside Shalom Japan restaurant on South 4th Street in Williamsburg. Police said that the man set fire to two windows tarps located outside the eatery that were emblazoned with Jewish stars. Video captured at the scene show the suspect dressed in a light colored shirt, pants and baseball cap, lingering as smoke starts to swirl.

Speaking to faith leaders at City Hall on December 8th, Mayor Eric Adams said that Chanukah celebrations will go on as scheduled in New York, with events canceled in other cities because of rising anti-Semitism.

“New York City will not be put in a place where fear and hate dictates how we live,” said Adams.

Anyone with any information about any of the above incidents is asked to contact the Crime Stoppers Hotline by phone at 800-577-TIPS, by text at 247637 (CRIMES) and then entering TIP577 or online at www.NYPDCrimeStoppers.com.
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