The NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force has joined the investigation into an assault and robbery of an 18-year-old man in Downtown Jamaica on Tuesday afternoon.
Police from the 103rd Precinct in Jamaica responded to the intersection of 160th Street and Jamaica Avenue, where the victim was attacked by a stranger in broad daylight just before 4:30 p.m.
The suspect could be seen on video surveillance footage stalking the teenager, who was walking while staring at his cell phone. As he made it to the corner, the perpetrator shouted anti-white statements to the victim before shoving him to the sidewalk, police said. The assailant proceeded to forcibly remove the teen’s cell phone from his hand before running off westbound on Jamaica Avenue towards Parson Boulevard.
The victim appeared to be a missionary, but an NYPD spokesman could not confirm that. The teen was not injured during the assault and robbery. There are no arrests and the investigation remains ongoing.
The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspect on Thursday and described him as having a dark complexion with a heavy build. He wore a blue New York Mets baseball cap and a blue athletic cycling shirt with white shorts and blue sneakers. He also wore black gloves and dark sunglasses with a silver necklace hanging from his neck.
Anyone with information regarding this hate crime investigation 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 crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, or on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
This is the first hate crime of the year to be reported in the confines of the 103rd Precinct after five were reported at the same point in 2023. Through July 14, the 103rd Precinct has reported 400 assaults so far in 2024, 32 more than the 368 reported at the same point last year, an increase of 8.7%, according to the most recent CompStat report.
Robberies are also on the rise in the precinct with 226 reported so far in 2024, 44 more than the 182 reported at the same point last year, an increase of 9.2%, according to CompStat.
