A man on an e-scooter has allegedly been attacking residents in Astoria and Long Island City over the past week — often riding up behind his victims and punching them in the head or body (Photo by Let’s Kick on Unsplash)
May 24, 2023 By Michael Dorgan
A man on an e-scooter has allegedly been attacking residents in Astoria and Long Island City over the past week, often riding up behind his victims and punching them in the head or body.
Police have confirmed that three such incidents have taken place, although they did not say if the same suspect is responsible for each alleged attack.
In each case, the suspect is described as being between 5 feet, 5 inches and 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighing around 170 pounds, cops said.
Posters to Reddit say that there have been other similar incidents in the area that fit the description of the suspect.
The first incident took place at around 7:10 a.m. on May 18, when a 43-year-old woman was attacked at 25-05 37th Ave., outside P.S. 112 Dutch Kills in Long Island City.
The victim, cops said, was getting items out of her parked car when a suspect on a black scooter approached her before unleashing several punches and kicks to her body.
- The woman was transported by EMS to Mount Sinai and treated for her injuries. The suspect is described as a white male who was last seen wearing a brown jacket, blue jeans and a white hat.
Later that day in Astoria, at around, 10 p.m., a 30-year-old man was walking with a woman on 35th Street, between Broadway and 31st Street, when he was sucker-punched by a suspect riding an e-scooter, according to police.
Video footage posted to Reddit shows the suspect riding up behind the victim on the sidewalk, jumping off the scooter, and then thumping the victim in the side of the head with a left fist.
The force of the punch caused the victim to fall against the woman, knocking her against several trash cans, the video shows. The suspect then hurriedly gets back up on the scooter and flees the scene northbound on 35th Street.
The Reddit user who posted the video said he was the victim of the attack and that the suspect shout racial slurs at him.
The victim suffered pain and bruising to his face. He refused medical attention on the scene, police said.
Police described the suspect as a male Hispanic, who was last seen wearing a blue jacket, black jogging pants, black sneakers and a black hat.
Then, on May 22 at around 9 p.m., a 23-year-old woman was allegedly attacked by an assailant on a scooter while she was standing in front of a residence on 31st Avenue and 30th Street in Astoria, police said.
The victim was pushed to the ground by the suspect and then struck several times about the body, police said.
The suspect then fled the scene on a scooter southbound on 30th Street, police said.
The alleged perpetrator is described as a white male and was last seen wearing a brown jacket, blue jeans and a white hat.
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