Suspect Charged With Hate Crime After Punching 55-Year-Old Asian Woman
Police have arrested a homeless man after a shocking viral video showed him sucker-punch a 55-year-old Asian woman in New York’s Chinatown.
The shocking video shown by CBS2 depcited the woman being slumped over near the Kong Sihk Tong restaurant on Tuesday. Witnesses quickly came to her aid and captured footage of the assailant, who claimed somebody had hit him initially.
“The woman hit the ground, her butt hit the ground, she fell back, the back of her head hit the outdoor dining structure. And her eyes just shut off, blacked out,” said witness Jin Zhen. “I was like, ‘Hey officer, a woman down the block just got knocked unconscious. The suspect is fleeing on feet. Follow me and we’ll catch up to him.”
48-year-old Alexander Wright was arrested for the crime. He will be under psychiatric evaluation.
“We have more work to do with mental health and criminal justice, gotta glue them together,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
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“Lives in a shelter, arrested eight times in the last year, randomly assaulting people, setting fires. The guy that was arrested on Friday setting fires. What are we doing in society, we’re releasing these people right back onto the street?” Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said.
This was just sent to me from my constituent. This just happened in my district in Chinatown. He has been arrested and our precinct is investigating. pic.twitter.com/sxNfCbrlza
— Yuh-Line Niou (@yuhline) May 31, 2021