A Manhattan man is charged with robbery as a hate crime in a series of attacks against Chinese women he thought would be “vulnerable,” reports WPIX.
Police say the incidents all happened two weeks ago to women between the ages of 21 and 43.
Authorities described the latest attack which they say is similar to the other five. A 23-year-old was walking alone when a man grabbed her purse, pulled her to the ground and stood over her saying “give me all your money.” A witness who called police say the man put his arm around the woman’s neck. Police were able to arrest suspect Manuel Israel 20 minutes later.
Israel is being held on $50,000 bail and faces a 36 count indictment.
The district attorney called the attacks “cowardly.”
You can read his complete statement and more details of the attacks on WPIX.