63-year-old victim of violent robbery is latest in series of assaults against elderly Sikhs in Queens
A Sikh man was reportedly attacked on Mother’s Day in the same Queens neighborhood in New York City where three Sikh men were assaulted last month.
In the latest in a string of attacks on Sikh men in Richmond Hill, Queens, Kuldip Singh was violently beaten during his morning walk at around 10:30 a.m. on May 8.
The 63-year-old was reportedly approached by a man on a bicycle who pulled out a gun and demanded money from him. Singh said he fought back by grabbing the suspect’s arm, causing them both to wrestle and hit the ground.
The suspect was unable to rob his victim. However, Singh was left with a broken nose and fractures in his right hand. He also suffered lacerations to the head and bruises from being beaten with the suspect’s pistol.
The incident, which is currently not considered a hate crime, is under investigation by the New York Police Department. The suspect has yet to be arrested.
“Richmond Hill has seen its fourth attack on an elderly Sikh man in just over five weeks,” the Sikh Press Association tweeted on Thursday. “This recent attack is not being treated as a hate crime unlike the others. However, the violent assault continues a worrying pattern of elderly Sikh men being targeted in the area which has a significant Sikh population. Local community groups are assisting police on the issue.”
The recent incident has left Singh feeling unsafe in the place he has called home for the past three decades.
“It’s too hard now, we’re very scared,” he was quoted as saying.
Two Sikh men, aged 64 and 76, also took a morning walk in the same neighborhood when they were approached by two men who beat and robbed them on April 12.
The assault happened near the area where Nirmal Singh, a 70-year-old visitor from Canada, was attacked while on his way to the Sikh Cultural Society on April 3.
“We are paying the price for that just because we look different,” Harpreet Toor of the Sikh Cultural Society said. “I just tell them to be on alert, but at the same time, I’m telling them not to put yourself in the closet either, if you put yourself in the closet or you close yourself, then they’ve won. And I definitely don’t want them to win.”
Featured Image via @SikhPA (left), PIX11 News (right)
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