NYPD searching for suspect in Brooklyn subway hate crime attack
DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN (WABC) -- Police are looking for the suspect who they say punched a 54-year-old man on a subway train and made antisemitic comments.
It happened Monday around 10:45 a.m. on a southbound N train at the Atlantic Avenue subway station.
Authorities say the suspect punched the victim in the face and body, made anti-Jewish statements and removed the victim's yarmulke from his head.
The suspect fled on an N train and was last seen at the Canal Street subway station.
By Wednesday, Jeremy Garrett was home recovering and but still has a swollen eye and bruises on parts of his face and body.
Garrett said he was headed home from the DMV when boarded the train. He said he was reading a psalm when he suddenly felt something hit him.
"I honestly, I didn't even realize, you know, I thought the window of the subway fell on me," he said. "We tussled a bit, I was trying to hold him on the train, and then the doors closed, and then they opened the doors again, and he ran off."
Garrett said medics took him to the hospital for treatment where they checked for broken bones or a brain injury.
"It's horrible because it happened on Purim, you know, right before the holiday," he said.
Officials say subway crime was up 18.5% in February compared to February 2025 and riders say subway safety is a concern.
As for Garrett, he said he won't let the attack affect him.
"I still want justice, but but I do forgive the man," Garrett said. "They keep coming for us. We still keep living, so we're not going to stop."
The attack is being investigated by the NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force.
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