Man arrested for attack on Asian woman under hate crime case
New York City police said that they have arrested a condemned murderer on charges of attacking a 65-year-old Asian woman on a street on Wednesday. The attack that was captured on a video went viral amidst the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes in the United States.
The New York Police Department said in a statement that they have 38-year-old Brandon Elliot as the man seen in the video kicking the woman to the ground and then kicking her several times on Monday near Times Square in midtown Manhattan.
Police said Elliot who murdered his mother was on lifetime parole after serving a prison term for the same. He faces various assault and hate-crime charges. The NYPD said the assailant was under scanner by the Hate Crimes Force since Monday afternoon. Police have also pointed out that anti-Asian statements were heard from the assailant during the assault.
Vilma Kari, an immigrant from the Philippines was identified as the victim by The New York Times citing a law enforcement source. According to the Times, Kari suffered a fractured pelvis. Her identity was not immediately confirmed by the police.
There has been a surge in hate crimes reported against Asian Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino noted that such crimes rose by 149% in 2020 in 16 major cities compared with 2019.
Anti-Asian hate crimes were heightened and concern was shown when six Asian women among eight people were fatally shot this month at Atlanta-area spas. A 21-year-old man was charged with the murder. The police are yet to deter a motive.
Responding to anti-Asian violence in the United States, President Joe Biden’s administration on Tuesday announced a set of measures, including deploying $49.5 million from COVID-19 relief funds for U.S. community programs that help victims.