Suspect Charged With Attempted Murder, Hate Crimes, After Trying to Run Over Yeshiva Rebbe and Students

By Matis Glenn

BROOKLYN — A suspect was arrested and charged with attempted murder as a hate crime, among other crimes, for trying to ram his car into a group of yeshiva students and a rebbe in Canarsie Wednesday afternoon after making antisemitic remarks.

The arrest followed a wide-scale search carried out by Shomrim members from across Brooklyn and police.

The suspect, 58-year-old Asghar Ali, lives in an apartment building in the the middle of heavily-Jewish populated Midwood, at 1201 Avenue K.

Shomrim received a call at around 11:30 a.m. from the Vien yeshiva in Canarsie, located at 5520 Glenwood Road, reporting a man who drove his car on to the yeshiva’s street and tried to run down students and a rebbe who were in front of the building.

The targeted students told Shomrim that Ali verbally expressed his desire to kill Jews during the rampage.

B’chasdei Hashem, no one was injured by the hate-driven driver. The yeshiva is located in an area with a very small Jewish presence.

A Shomrim member who was a block away from the yeshiva responded to the scene, but the suspect had fled eastbound.

Shomrim issued a call to members in Boro Park, Flatbush, Crown Heights and Williamsburg, to search for the man, due to the severity of the situation and the potential for harm.

One of the students gave the suspect’s plate number to Shomrim, who used it to canvass the area, eventually finding the car on Nostrand Avenue and Quentin Road at around 1:30 p.m. Shomrim followed the driver for a few minutes until he parked. The suspect was sitting in his car when he was arrested by police shortly after.

In addition to attempted murder as a hate crime, Ali was charged by police with a slew of other hate crimes, including multiple counts and variations of attempted assault, menacing, and reckless endangerment.