Disturbing news of a savage hate crime beating in New York, where suspects brutally beat an elderly Muslim man: NYPD: Suspects Savagely Attacked Elderly Man In Queens After Asking If He Was Muslim.On November 24, 72-year-old Ali Akmal was out for an early morning walk when two men approached him and asked "are you Muslim or Hindu?" When he responded "Muslim," they attacked him. Hell, they tried to kill him.
Bloody and bruised from head to toe, Akmal was hospitalized in critical condition. He can't walk and can barely speak. The case has been assigned to detectives with the NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force:
"They pretty much tried to kill him, with their hands, their own bare hands and maybe a bat, too. But they pretty much had the mentality that 'Yeah we have to kill this person,'" the victim's granddaughter told CBS 2's Dick Brennan.The suspects were caught on surveillance video running from the crime scene:
Akmal's granddaughter did not want to show her face on camera because the attackers are still out there. Police said the suspects on seen on surveillance video running from the crime scene.
Akmal's tongue was so badly swollen that he couldn't talk for two days. When he finally could, he told police that when he first encountered the two men, they asked him, "are you Muslim or Hindu?"
He responded "I'm Muslim," and that’s when they attacked.
The beating was so savage and personal, Akmal was even bitten on the nose.
According to police, the suspects are both in their late teens or early 20s. Anyone with information is asked to call police or Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS or visit crimestoppers.com.
More here: Beating of Queens Grandfather Probed as Hate Crime.