A stranger randomly tripped a Jewish woman on a Brooklyn street this week, in an assault that the NYPD is investigating as a hate crime, police said Friday.
The 51-year-old victim, wearing traditional religious garb, was walking on Empire Boulevard near Rogers Avenue in Prospect Lefferts Gardens around 10 a.m. Thursday when the male assailant approached her from the opposite direction, authorities said.
As the two were about to pass each other, he allegedly tripped her without saying a word, cops said.
She fell to the sidewalk, suffering bruises and cuts on her hands and knees.
The assailant then took off along Empire Boulevard, and was last seen entering the Sterling Street/Nostrand Avenue Nos. 2 and 5 subway station.
The victim was taken to Maimonides Medical Center, where she was treated and released.
The NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating.
The suspect, shown in photos released by the NYPD – one of them inside the Sterling Street subway station – is described as around 40 years old with a dark complexion and thin build.
He was last seen wearing eyeglasses, a camouflage-colored Nike baseball cap, a blue T-shirt, black shorts and black sneakers.