Hate crime investigation after man has yarmulke slapped off head in Brooklyn

FLATLANDS, Brooklyn (WABC) -- The NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating after a man slapped a yarmulke off the head of a stranger in Brooklyn, and they're hoping surveillance video will lead to an arrest.

It happened just after 10:30 p.m. on Avenue L near East 32nd Street in the Flatlands section.

The 22-year-old male victim said the unknown suspect stepped out of a vehicle and asked him for directions.

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He answered the man, who then slapped him in the face, knocking the victim's yarmulke off of his head.

He then jumped back in the vehicle and fled the scene.

The victim suffered redness and pain to his face but refused medical attention.

The suspect was later caught on camera at a gas station on Nostrand Avenue with another man, as well as on video inside a convenience area of the gas station.

Raw video:

The NYPD Hate Crimes Task is investigating after a man was assaulted in the Flatlands section

There are no arrests, and the investigation is ongoing.

"Make no mistake, an attack on our Jewish community is an attack on every New Yorker," Mayor Eric Adams said on Twitter. "We will catch the perpetrators of this assault."

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).

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