A teenager accused of attacking a 70-year-old Sikh man in Queens earlier this month has been arrested, the NYPD said Thursday.
Vernon Douglas, 19, of Brownsville, was taken into custody for second-degree assault as a hate crime, aggravated harassment and second-degree assault tied to the victim’s race or religion on Thursday, police said.
What You Need To Know
- A teenager accused of attacking a 70-year-old Sikh man in Queens earlier this month has been arrested, the NYPD said
- The man was walking to the Sikh Cultural Society in South Richmond Hill around 6:45 a.m. on April 3 when the attack happened, police said
- The assault was one of two alleged anti-Sikh attacks that have taken place in Queens in less than two weeks, the NYPD said
Attorney information for Douglas wasn’t immediately available.
The victim, identified by local elected officials as Nirmal Singh, was walking to the Sikh Cultural Society in South Richmond Hill around 6:45 a.m. on April 3 when Douglas allegedly approached him from behind and punched him in the face, the NYPD said.
Singh’s interpreter, Harpreet Singh Toor, told NY1 the 70-year-old walked to the temple after the attack, which left him with a cut on his face.
Someone at the temple saw that Singh was injured and called 911, Toor said. He was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center for treatment, police said.
The assault on Singh was one of two alleged anti-Sikh attacks that have taken place in Queens in less than two weeks, the NYPD said.
On Wednesday, a 20-year-old man was arrested on robbery and hate-crime assault charges in connection with an attack on two Sikh men, ages 76 and 64, that took place in Richmond Hill Tuesday morning, police said.
Police said the 20-year-old and a second suspect pulled off the two men’s turbans and beat them with “closed fists” and a wooden stick.
The second suspect had not been arrested as of Wednesday afternoon.