Williamsburg Man Assaulted in Parking Dispute

By Matis Glenn

An Orthodox Jewish man needed stitches after being punched in the face over a parking dispute in Williamsburg Tuesday morning, Shomrim tells Hamodia. Video taken at the scene, on Division Avenue and Driggs Avenue, shows an argument between the victim and a relative of a driver who claimed that their parking spot was taken by the victim to park a trailer. The incident occurred at around 10:15am.

The relative quickly became hostile, pushing the Jewish man against a gate. The latter responded by lightly pushing against him. The relative began shouting expletives and threatening violence if the other man did not acquiesce. The Jewish man’s responses are inaudible on the video, but he does not show any outward signs of threatening. The other man became more aggressive, lunging at him menacingly before punching him in his face, something he had threatened to do from the start. The suspect continued to threaten him after the assault, saying that he would “find” him.

The assault is not being investigated as a hate crime. Shomrim and Hatzalah arrived at the scene, and the victim was taken to a medical center where he received stitches in his face.

The suspect fled on a bicycle; he is wanted by police.

There were several onlookers, one of whom filmed the incident on his cell phone; none of them intervened.