Hate crime task force searching for suspect who beat Asian man with umbrella in Downtown Brooklyn

Downtown & Brooklyn sign in a subway station in Manhattan, New York City
Downtown & Brooklyn sign in a subway station in Manhattan, New York City

NEW YORK, NY – Police are continuing their search for a suspect wanted for an assault and hate crime that took place in Downtown Brooklyn in early December.

Detectives with the 88th Precinct said that on December 3rd, at around 4 pm, a black male suspect approached an Asian man near the intersection of Fleet Place and Willoughby Street and began shouting anti-Asian obscenities.

At one point during the exchange, the suspect threatened to kill the Asian male victim.

The suspect then assaulted the 35-year-old man, striking him in the head with an umbrella before fleeing. The man suffered a minor head injury, but refused medical treatment at the scene.

The suspect fled in an unknown direction.

“The individual being sought is described as a male with a dark complexion, approximately 5’9″ tall with a slim build,” the NYPD said on Saturday. “He was last seen wearing a black winter hat, a white face mask, a black bubble jacket with a hood, a black button-down shirt, black pants and white sneakers.”

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).