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Dad Says Son Is "Traumatized" After Hate Crime "ISIS" Beating
By
Ben Yakas
Published May 1, 2016
Modified May 1, 2016
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By
Ben Yakas
Published May 1, 2016
Modified May 1, 2016
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This week, a 19-year-old was punched and beaten by a group of fellow teens in Astoria in broad daylight in what police say was likely a hate crime. Ray Bisram, the victim’s father, told reporters that his son (whose name hasn't been released) is traumatized after the suspects allegedly taunted him by yelling, "ISIS, ISIS."
"Right now, he's kind of traumatized, because, you know, a guy punching him and another guy running with a bat and a metal pipe scream out, you know, racist words and stuff toward him, he’s pretty traumatized because he’s thinking what if they would have hit me with that pipe,” Bisram told Univision.
The incident happened around 1:20 p.m. on Wednesday, outside 33-55 10th Street in Astoria. The victim was walking down 10th Street when three boys between the ages of 17 and 19 began following him. When the victim turned around to see who was trailing him, police say one suspect allegedly called him an "Arab" and punched him in the face twice.
“It’s shocking because it happened so fast,” Bisram said, adding that one of the teens had a metal pipe and another had a baseball bat which they used to threaten his son. You can see surveillance video of the suspects below.
114 Fina Edit RMA 1214-16by Gothamist
“It was just a protruding lump that came out of his head,” Ron Garcia, the victim’s neighbor, told CBS. He said he was walking in the neighborhood when he stumbled upon the attack underway: "They pushed him up there and that’s when they went to take the swing on the pipe with him,” Garcia said. “He averted it, like he moved out away and midway to me, and when he made his way to me, that’s when they ran up the block."
The NYPD describes the suspects as follows: one male, aged 17-19 years-old, short black close cut hair, approximately 5'6" tall, 160 lbs, last seen wearing a dark colored two tone sweater with vertical lines, black pants and black sneakers. Another, also 17-19 years-old, approximately 5'9" tall, 180 lbs., chin strap beard and short black hair, and last seen wearing a black jacket, black t-shirt, dark colored blue jeans and black sneakers. The third suspect is around 18-years-old, approximately 5'9" tall, black hair and a beard, was last seen wearing a black hooded sweat jacket with white horizontal stripes, black jeans, grey t-shirt and grey sneakers.
Anyone with information in regards to this robbery 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 or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. All calls are kept confidential.
Tagged
astoria
bias attack
hate crime
isis
queens
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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