A horrifying video shows a masked man attempting to rip a six-year-old Hassidic Jewish boy out of the arms of his father in broad daylight as they walked down the sidewalk together Saturday.
The boy’s father was holding hands and walking down the sidewalk with his two sons at around 3:30 pm in Crown Heights when the masked assailant, who is seen wearing a blue and white letterman jacket, approaches the family and snatches the boy.
The would-be kidnapper, who appears to be over six feet tall, lifted the child into the air when his father swiftly yanked him back out of the maniac’s arms.
The Orthodox Jewish man then punches the masked man in the stomach.
The attacker fled on foot, and no injuries were reported police sources confirm.
The investigation is ongoing and is being handled by the 71st precinct. No arrests have been made at this time.
A representative for Shomrim, a private police force serving NYC’s Jewish community, said that no words were exchanged between the attacker and his victims before or during the assault.
It is unclear why the man targeted the child.
“This video is shocking,” wrote Chabad PR rep Yaacov Behrman in a post on X.
“Something is clearly going on in Crown Heights—there have been incident after incident over the past two weeks,” he added.
Crown Heights, a major population center for New York’s ultra-orthodox community, is no stranger to unprovoked violent attacks.
A Jewish man, Yechiel Dabrowskin, was stabbed in the stomach and suffered internal bleeding after a crazed brute screamed “Free Palestine” before viciously attacking him in August.
The attacker, Vincent Sumpter, 22, was arrested with bail set at $100,000.
