An elderly Asian American woman was brutally beaten Monday afternoon by a man who repeatedly kicked her in front of witnesses, who seemingly ignored the attack.
The 65-year-old was walking along 43rd street when a man came up to her and kicked her in the stomach, knocking her to the ground, NYPD said. The man then stomped on the woman's head several times while shouting anti-Asian statements at her. He then walks away from the scene, surveillance footage shows.
The woman was hospitalized with serious injuries, NBC New York reports.
Footage shows a man inside a building lobby seemingly stop to watch what occurred. Two more men wearing blazers walked into the camera view. One of them closed the door while the woman was on the ground.
The incident took place at a building managed by the Brodsky Organization. The group said in a statement that it was aware of the incident and that staff who witnessed what happened and stood idly by had been suspended pending an investigation. The organization added that it was working to identify a third-party delivery vendor who was also present at the time.
The NYPD's Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the incident and has asked anyone with information to contact the department.
Amid an alarming trend of vicious anti-Asian attacks around the U.S., the NYPD says there have been 33 hate crimes with an Asian victim so far this year.
Lawmakers present at a rally Monday morning to denounce Asian hate reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen laws and increase community training.
Photo: Getty Images