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Elderly Woman Punched In East New York May Be 10th 'Knockout' Victim


By

Rebecca Fishbein

Published Nov 30, 2013

Modified Nov 30, 2013


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Surveillance photo of alleged attacker.

 

NYPD


By

Rebecca Fishbein

Published Nov 30, 2013

Modified Nov 30, 2013


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A 76-year-old woman was punched in the head in East New York yesterday morning—and it is suspected she may be the 10th victim of the so-called "knockout" game that has plagued Brooklyn recently.

Authorities say that Yvonne Small, 76, was walking along Wortman Ave. near Alabama Ave in East New York at about 11:35 a.m. yesterday when an unknown assailant came up behind her and punched her in the back of the head. She fell to the ground, according to police, and the suspect fled; Small was treated at Brookdale Hospital and released.

Cops say they are still searching for Small's assailant, and residents are concerned yesterday's attack was one of the "knockout" attacks, in which individuals sucker punch strangers in an attempt to knock them out in one go. Nine other victims, many of whom were Jewish residents of Brooklyn neighborhoods like Midwood, Crown Heights and Borough Park, have come forward to claim they were victims of the game; just hours before Small was attacked, members of the Rev. Al Sharpton group National Action Network rallied in East New York against the attacks. "This is what we're coming to in our community that our children are finding recreation in hurting someone," Lesha Seku, an activist with the group, told ABC News.

The group is advocating for social media sites and YouTube to stop airing violent videos in hopes that it will cut down on real life violence. "We will be talking to the advertisers of those networks to make sure that they understand if they don’t take action, we will take action,” Tony Herbert, president of the group’s East Brooklyn chapter, told the NY Post.

The NYPD has been investigating which assaults may or may not be part of the "knockout pattern," which people believe has been mimicked in cities all over the country; an NYC chef who was brutally beaten in Philadelphia believes he was a "knockout" victim as well.

Tagged

brooklyn

east new york

knockout

knockout game

nypd

yvonne small


Rebecca Fishbein

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