A teenager was seriously injured when he was attacked by a stranger in broad daylight at the Rochdale Village Shopping Mall on Sunday afternoon.
Police from the 113th Precinct in Jamaica are looking for a suspect who was seen searching through some bushes for something in front of 169-77 137th Ave. at around 2:15 p.m. when the 19-year-old victim drew his attention. The assailant approached the teen, punched him multiple times, and proceeded to stab him before running off, traveling southbound towards 137th Avenue, police said.
EMS responded to the crime scene and rushed the wounded victim to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was listed in serious but stable condition.
The NYPD released surveillance video of the suspect rummaging through the shrubbery and described him as having a medium complexion with a slim build. He wore a blue du-rag, a black hooded sweatshirt, black sweatpants and black sneakers.
A reward of up to $3,500 is being offered for information that leads to his arrest.
Anyone with information regarding this assault 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.
Through Sept. 22, the 113th Precinct has reported 284 assaults so far in 2024, 18 more than the 266 reported at the same point last year, an increase of 6.8%, according to the most recent CompStat report.
