A New York City man was convicted of strangulation and assault as hate crimes on Wednesday for the unprovoked 2018 attack on a Jewish man who was walking home from synagogue.
A jury found James Vincent, 44, guilty of four hate crime-related charges and one addition charge for the physical assault of Rabbi Menachem Moskowitz who was walking home after praying in the East Flatbush section of Brooklyn, NBC News reported.
The victim sustained a cracked rib along with swelling, bruising, a black eyes, and scratches on his body.
As the victim passed Vincent, he said “good afternoon," at which point the assailant began yelling anti-Semitic abuse at him.
“As soon as [I greeted] him he began yelling at me ‘you fake Jews, who are you saying hello to? Your fake Jews and you stole all my money and robbed me, and stole my mortgage and my house. I want to kill you!’” CrownHeights.info quoted Rabbi Moskowitz as saying.
He said he then walked away from Vincent quickly but that the assailant caught up with him, put him in a chokehold, and threatened to kill him.
“Today’s verdict speaks to Brooklyn’s resolve to combating and rooting out hate from our communities,” Brooklyn District Attorney Gonzalez said. “The defendant has been brought to justice for this senseless, disturbing and hateful crime against a man simply walking home from his synagogue. Brooklyn’s strength is in its diversity and I remain committed to vigorously prosecuting bias-motivated violence.”
According to the Brooklyn Eagle, several security camera videos identified the assailant, and an investigation found that he bought ice cream nearby using a card with his name on it. He was later arrested.
Vincent faces a maximum sentence of 15 years. Sentencing will take place on December 13.