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According to June 19th (local time) CNN broadcast and the New York Post, the Manhattan Provincial Prosecutor's Office in New York City was accused of a number of hate crimes including a third-class assault on a woman (47) from Florida the night before.
Prior to this, the suspect was alleged to have pepper sprayed 4 Asian women on June 11th in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan, New York City, and assaulted three of them.
At the time, graphic designer Nicole Jung (24) met the suspect while the group was looking for a lost bag. The suspect complained to her, saying "Don't bother me," and shouted, "Go back to your home country."
One member of the group took out their cell phone to film it and leave evidence. The suspect then hit her cell phone and uttered abusive words, then took out pepper spray and sprayed Jung and the group's face whilst escaping.
"It was like someone had bleached my eyes. The pain got worse and worse," Jung said of the situation at the time. "Since the pandemic of the COVID-19 virus, hatred toward Asian people has occurred," she said. "I feel that it is not safe to be alone in the city."
The New York Police Department (NYPD) launched an investigation through the Hate Crimes Task Force (TF, a special team) when the footage shot by Chung's group spread online and attracted attention. The suspect was subsequently arrested for witness reports.
Meanwhile, according to NYPD statistics, the number of hate crimes in 2020, when the pandemic of the COVID-19 virus began, has more than tripled year-on-year. From the end of March last year to the end of March this year, 577 hate crimes occurred, of which 110 were targeted at Asian descent.
2022/06/24 09:31 KST
