NYPD seeking suspect in anti-Asian subway mugging attempt
NEW YORK - The NYPD is searching for a man accused of trying to mug a subway passenger in what is being investigated as an anti-Asian hate crime.
According to authorities, the suspect was panhandling aboard a train approaching the West 34th Street and Avenue of the Americas subway station when he approached the Asian victim on Thursday afternoon.
The suspect then asked the victim if he was Chinese and threatened his life before trying to grab his bag and mobile phone. The victim was able to jump off the train at the next stop and wasn't injured.
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No property was taken.
The case is among the latest in a national spike in anti-Asian crimes.
Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM, on Twitter @NYPDTips.
Police say all calls are strictly confidential.