6-year-old boy thrown to ground by homeless man in Queens

A six-year-old boy was hospitalized in critical condition after a homeless man threw him to the ground in Queens in an unprovoked attack, according to police.

The child was sitting on the steps of his grandparent's house on Metropolitan Avenue near Lefferts Boulevard when the man walked up to the driveway, picked the boy up and threw him to the ground, according to the NYPD.  The child struck his head on the pavement.

The incident happened at around 4:50 p.m. on Thursday.  The boy was taken to Cohen's Children's Medica Center with a head injury. He was being treated for hemorrhaging to the brain and a contusion to the head.

The grandfather called 911, chased the man and held him until police arrived.  Police arrested Laurance Gendreau, 35, in connection with the case.  He faces assault, harassment and injuring a child charges.

There were at least three assaults on children by homeless men in 2019 including an attack on a boy on Manhattan's west side in September.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.