Hasidic Group in Williamsburg Attacked by Queens Couple in Social Distancing-Spat

By Ilana Siyance

On Sunday night, the police arrested an anti-Semitic couple from Queens who allegedly attacked a group of Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn.  As reported by the NY Post, Paulo Pinho, 35, and his wife, Clelia Pinho, 46, were charged with aggravated harassment as a hate crime after confronting a large group of Hasidic Jews with anti-Semitic slurs and violence, even ripping off some masks from their victims.  The couple was driving by Bedford Ave & Ross St in Williamsburg when they saw a group of Hasidic Jews gathered outside on Sunday evening.  The Queens couple was apparently enraged about what they felt was a lack of social distancing, Police said.

The couple came out of the car screaming hateful slurs blaming the Jewish Hasidic community for the coronavirus.  They said things to the effect of, “You’re the reason why we’re getting sick,” police paraphrased. Paulo Pinho, called cops on the crowd and then approached three Hasidic men violently trying to rip off their masks and setting off a fight.  The crowd detained the pair until the police arrived and took them into custody, police said.  “They were at that corner, they encountered these three males and made anti-Semitic remarks,” NYPD Lt. Thomas Antonetti told The Post. “After making the statements, that’s when the masks were pulled off.”

As seen in a video released by The Belaaz, dozens of cops came to the scene to respond to the call, following the 8:35 p.m. attack.  The two suspected instigators were taken to a hospital, with Paulo complaining of an injury to his arm, and Clelia sustaining cuts and minor injuries in the scuffle, police said.  The victims, at least one of whom was wearing traditional Hasidic garb, declined medical attention at the scene, as per the Post.

On Monday morning, Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose comments last month were criticized for potentially igniting a spike in anti-Semitism, commented to reporters.  He said the alleged attack was “absolutely unacceptable” and warned others against committing such crimes.  “We don’t accept bias in New York City,” de Blasio said. “We don’t accept hate in any form.”  The mayor confirmed that the incident is being investigated by police as a hate crime.  “We will not tolerate hate, we will act on it quickly,” de Blasio added. “Anyone who engages in an act of hate will be suffering the consequences of their action.”