Woman's memorial vandalized days after her grisly murder inside Chinatown apartment
CHINATOWN, Manhattan (WABC) -- Just days after a woman was murdered inside her apartment in Chinatown, her memorial was targeted and vandalized.
The Lower East Side has come to a new low.
"We are angry and we are saddened," landlord Brian Chin said.
Note: Above video is from a previous report
A memorial was shattered in a community already shattered by the killing of Christina Yuna Lee.
"They targeted her memorial," Chin said.
Chin found the remnants in front of the Chrystie Street building Wednesday morning.
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"The street of full of smashed glass, candles knocked over, the signs were ripped off, flowers were scattered over the sidewalk," Chin said.
Chin immediately cleaned it up the damage that was left behind.
"We retaped the signs to the trees, we wrote new messages, we replaced candles, we placed more flowers," Chin said.
Messages of hope and prayers are back up.
"It's beautiful to see a community care so much about a woman that did not deserve this," Chin said.
Days after the 35-year-old was brutally killed in her sixth-floor apartment by a man who followed her in and up the stairs, 25-year-old Assamad Nash was charged with murder.
Police say this incident is not a hate crime, but Asian American community members say they feel unsafe.
"It's just sad. I feel upset. I know we have to use our ability to gain the respect from some people who don't like us," Midtown resident Melina said.
They further feel this vandalism was a hate crime.
RELATED | Man accused of murdering woman inside Chinatown apartment arraigned, charged
"The Asian American community has grown accustomed to this hatred," Chin said.
It's a reality that is difficult to absorb at time when support should be the focus.
"The community won't let her spirit be torn down, her memory town down so easily," Chin said.
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