Man Arrested For Homophobic Attack On Woman

New York City police have reportedly made an arrest in connection with a violent and homophobic assault that occurred aboard a Manhattan-bound E train last month.

According to the Twitter accounts of NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot F. Shea and several other police agencies, 54-year-old Allah Allahseed has been taken into custody and charged with assault as a hate crime for allegedly shoving a woman so hard that she suffered a fractured spine after he witnessed her sharing a kiss with a female companion.

Police reports claim that the man also shouted homophobic slurs at the 20-year-old victim before pummeling her in the back of the head, injuring her so badly in the process that she was later taken to Elmhurst Hospital Centre.

According to the police report, the suspect had remained on the train immediately following the assault, eventually exiting at Forest Hills 71 Av station and fleeing on foot.

“Once again, NYC has made it clear: we have #NoPlaceForHate,” Shea wrote in a Thursday tweet, in which he also confirmed that the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force had been the team to make the arrest.

In general, hate crimes are on the rise nationally for the third straight year, according to FBI data — a trend that has coincided with the uptick in virulent rhetoric that has dominated U.S. politics and news coverage.

New York City in particular has seen a troubling surge in anti-semitic hate crimes, a pattern that NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill has promised to confront head-on.

“The increased reports of swastikas and other criminal mischief here in the 5 boroughs absolutely concerns us,” O’Neill said in November. “And none of it, none of it will ever be tolerated in New York City.”