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Brooklyn Gunman: "I Want To See Arab Blood In The Streets"
By
John Del Signore
Published Dec 28, 2015
Modified Dec 28, 2015
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By
John Del Signore
Published Dec 28, 2015
Modified Dec 28, 2015
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A Brooklyn man was arrested on hate crime charges Saturday night after he allegedly followed a group of four Arab men and threatened them. James Samways, 40, approached the men near the corner of East 33rd Street and Avenue S in Marine Park around 9:30 p.m. and allegedly yelled at them: "I want to see Arab blood in the streets!"
Samways, who resides in Coney Island, was brandishing what his victims said was a silver pistol. They say Samways followed them when they walked away, waving the gun and shouting, "I am an Israeli! Go back to Mecca!"
Police later canvassed the neighborhood and found Samways, who was unarmed at the time of his arrest. (The Daily News reports that Samways is a UPS worker and custodian.) He was charged with menacing as a hate crime, a police spokesman said.
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hate crime
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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