Woman, 32, is arrested for stabbing Jewish man with a syringe in chilling attack on New York street
A woman was arrested for allegedly assaulting two Jewish men in separate anti-Semitic attacks on New York streets, police said.
Anna Mochalova, 32, physically harassed Yosef with a needle last week, according to the New York City Police Department.
Investigators said that the suspect stalked the 26-year-old Jewish rabbi while he was walking in Midtown Manhattan at around 6.00pm.
Video shared online by Shomrim Manhattan appears to show Mochalova pursuing the rabbi and stabbing him from behind when he started walking away.
The police arrested Mochalova on charges including assault as a hate crime, her lawyer Lila Carpenter has since said that she believes her client was wrongfully identified as the suspect.
She will also face charges of menacing, aggravated harassment and criminal possession of a weapon, the New York Post reported.
The suspect allegedly assaulted a 37-year-old Jewish man in a nearby area a few hours before the incident, the police said.
The attacks are being investigated by the NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force as antisemitic, the outlet reported.
Anna Mochalova was arrested by the New York Police after she stabbed Yosef, a 26-year-old rabbi in Manhattan’s Diamond District
The suspect followed Yosef for a while before piercing him with a syringe
Mochalova had allegedly assaulted another Jewish man a few hours before this incident. The police arrested her on charges including assault as a hate crime
Yosef, who did not want his last name to be used, told the New York Post that he thinks he was targeted because he was ‘visibly Jewish.’
‘I never met that person before,’ he said. ‘She passes by other people. I’m visibly Jewish.’
At the time of the alleged attack, Yosef was dressed in traditional Orthodox garb and was wearing a black hat.
He said he came to the Diamond District regularly to attempt Jewish outreach on the street. On the day of the attack, he was doing the same.
Yosef said he was minding his own business when Mochalova started following him as he approached a grocery store nearby.
He later noticed that his shirt was soaked in blood, after which he was taken to the Bellevue Hospital.
The rabbi was released from the hospital after three hours, The Post reported. He returned to the place where he was attacked despite feeling ‘shaken,’ he said.
He said his return amazed members of the community. ‘They were in shock when I came back.’
The rabbi said he will continue helping Jewish men. ‘I traveled the country. I never really experienced antisemitism anywhere in America on a personal level,’ he added.
Unlike Yosef, the other victim said he confronted Mochalova when she deliberately bumped into him, the Post reported.
The victim said Mochalova spoke Russian and then stabbed him in the arm with a sharp object.
Mochalova’s arraignment took place today in Manhattan Criminal Court. She was released on $150,000 bail, Col Live reported.
