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NYPD: Homophobic Man Broke Woman's Spine In Alleged Subway Hate Crime
By
Ben Yakas
Published Dec 9, 2018
Modified Dec 9, 2018
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DCPI
By
Ben Yakas
Published Dec 9, 2018
Modified Dec 9, 2018
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A man allegedly sucker-punched a woman on the E train because he thought she was a lesbian—and he hit her so hard she fractured her spine, according to the NYPD.
Police say the incident happened just after 5 p.m. Friday, November 30th, in Queens on a Manhattan-bound E train. The suspect apparently became incensed after he saw another woman give the 20-year-old victim a kiss on the cheek. The suspect allegedly called the victim a "dyke," and they got into a verbal dispute.
As the woman began to walk away from the suspect, police say he approached from behind, punched her in the back of her head and shoved her to the ground, causing her to strike her head on the train's floor. He fled the train at the next stop at Forest Hills-71st Ave.
The victim was transported to Elmhurst Hospital Center with a fractured spine. Police say the Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the incident.
You can see a cell phone video of the suspect below; he is described as 5'11", 220 lbs, and 50-60 years old.
Anyone with information in regard to this incident 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, on Twitter @NYPDTips or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577.
Tagged
hate crime
MTA
nypd
police
spine
subway
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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