Man Charged With Hate Crime After Orthodox Jew Beaten In Brooklyn

By Alyssa Fisher October 15, 2018

A man was been charged on Sunday with a hate crime in connection to the beating of an Orthodox Jewish man in Brooklyn, NBC New York reported.

Police said they found Farrukh Afzal of Staten Island beating 62-year-old Lipa Schwartz in the Boro Park neighborhood. Afzal was arrested and charged with assault as a hate crime, criminal mischief and harassment, NBC reported.

Schwartz was walking to synagogue when Afzal stopped his car, ran toward him and started to beat him, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

Schwartz said that his attacker spoke another language, but he recognized “Allah” and “Israel,” NBC reported. He was taken to the hospital in stable condition with cuts, pain and bruises to his head.

A second Orthodox man tried to help Schwartz, according to the ADL, but Afzal allegedly chased him down the street.

The ADL put out a statement Sunday, expressing concern over the recent string of attacks on the Brooklyn Orthodox community.

“We are deeply disturbed by and unequivocally condemn this horrific attack, and thank the New York City Police Department and its Hate Crimes Task Force for taking swift action in this case and for investigating a bias motive,” said Evan Bernstein, ADL’s New York and New Jersey regional director. “Brooklyn is a community of great diversity, and incidents like these can damage the fabric of our society and fragment communities. We will continue to offer our support in responding to hate, so that New York City remains safe and inclusive for all.”

The organization found that there have been 11 anti-Semitic assaults in New York so far in 2018. Eight have been in Brooklyn.

Alyssa Fisher is a news writer at the Forward. Email her at fisher@forward.com, or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO