NYC woman arrested for allegedly throwing hot coffee at man in anti-Muslim attack
Hadasa Bozakkaravani, 48, turned herself in to police Tuesday.
NEW YORK - A woman who allegedly threw her cell phone and hot coffee at a man in a hate crime attack at a New York City playground surrendered herself to police on Tuesday.
Police said Hadasa Bozakkaravani, 48, is accused of making anti-Islamic statements to the victim at Edmonds Playground near Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, before assaulting him, police said.
Bozakkaravani faces nine different charges, including four separate hate crime charges.
New York City has seen a jump in hate crimes, including growing anti-Muslim attacks, as tensions remain high in the U.S. amid protests around the Israel-Hamas war.
RELATED: NYC hate crimes on the rise as tensions run high over Israel-Hamas war
The total number of bias incidents investigated by the NYPD Hate Crime Task Force last month increased by 124%, the NYPD announced in its citywide crime statistics for October.
The latest war began with an attack by Hamas militants on Oct. 7. Since then, Israel has responded with weeks of attacks in Gaza, killing more than 11,000, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
The city has recorded eight investigations into anti-Muslim crimes – with none reported in the same month last year. New York City has also seen a 214% spike in anti-Jewish incidents compared to October 2022.