Queens couple plead guilty to keeping children as slaves

Sook Yeong Park and Jeong Taek Lee held two Korean kids as slaves in their home for several years.



This week in New York, a Flushing couple admitted to holding two Korean children as slaves in their home for several years, forcing them to work long hours and withholding contact with their parents.

Couple Who Kept Korean Teens as 'Slaves' at Flushing Home Plead Guilty

50-year-old Sook Yeong Park pleaded guilty to two counts of labor trafficking. Park was sentenced to six months in prison followed by five years probation, after taking a plea deal. The 60-count indictment against her included grand larceny, forcible touching and assault for her treatment of the two children. Her husband, 54-year-old Jeong Taek Lee, was sentenced to five years probation.

The two victims, a 9-year-old brother and 11-year-old sister from Korea, were brought to stay with the couple in January 2010. Shortly afterwards, Park confiscated their passports and effectively enslaved them.

Man wanted in two hate crime attacks on Indian women

Sherlock Arana is suspected of punching women in two separate attacks in Queens subway stations.



In New York, authorities are looking a man suspected of punching two Indian women in separate attacks inside Queens subway stations. The NYPD is investigating the incidents as possible hate crimes.

Cops Hunt Man Punching Women in Queens Subway Stations

28-year-old Sherlock Arana is accused of uttering anti-Indian slurs before attacking both women.

In the first attack on December 8, Arana allegedly walked up to an 18-year-old woman in the 88th Street station in Ozone Park, began making anti-Indian remarks, then punched her in the face before running away.

The second attack occurred last Thursday, when Arana reportedly offered to swipe a 30-year-old woman into the Jamaica-179th Street station if she agreed to pay. When the woman refused, Arana made an anti-Indian remark and punched her in the head. The blow caused the woman to fall to the ground and hit her head, while Arana fled the scene.

68-year-old man on life support after road rage incident

Chun Tse was assaulted after getting into a minor traffic accident in Queens.



In New York, a 68-year-old man is hospitalized and on life support after being assaulted in an alleged road rage confrontation following a minor traffic accident. The incident was caught on dash cam video.

68-Year-Old Man On Life Support After Alleged Road Rage Incident In Queens

Chun Tse was involved in a fender bender last week in Queens. Dash cam video shows him walk to the front of the car to check the damage, then exchange words with the other driver, 44-year-old Cleaman Anderson. Moments later, Anderson punched Tse, causing him to fall to the ground and hit his head.

Police seek help identifying man found beaten(?) in Queens

Mystery patient wound bruised, bloody and semi-conscious at a Flushing bus stop.



In New York, police are asking for the public's help identifying a man who was found beaten at a Queens bus stop. The man was hospitalized with injuries so severe, he can't speak or tell doctors his name.

Help needed to ID mystery patient found semi-conscious at Queens bus stop

On Monday morning, a passerby found the man lying at a bus stop near 46th Avenue and Auburndale Lane in Flushing. He was semi-conscious with cuts and signs of trauma all over his face, and was taken to the hospital, where he's been all week -- with no name. Police say the man is unable to speak.

The man is described as an Asian male in his 50s, 5-feet-10 inches tall and about 150 pounds. He was wearing a white t-shirt and a light gray Old Navy hooded sweatshirt with a wolf and the number 9 on the back.

Anyone with information is urged to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).

Teen survives after being pushed in front of oncoming train

Police are searching for the man who pushed a 17-year-old girl onto the subway tracks in Queens.



In New York, police are searching for a man who pushed a teenage girl into the path of an oncoming subway train in Queens. Thankfully, the girl was able to get out of the way train and avoid getting seriously hurt.

Police looking for man who pushed teen in front of subway train in Queens

On Saturday night, a 17-year-old girl was on the platform at the Roosevelt Avenue and 103rd Street station when a man approached her from behind and pushed her on the tracks in front of the oncoming 7 train.

The train's motorman saw the girl on the tracks and was able to activate the emergency brake. The girl, identified by the New York Post as Xinya Huang, was able to position herself between the platform and the train's wheels. She was taken to the hospital and treated for minor injuries.

Police have released blurry surveillance video of the suspect, who fled the station toward the street following the incident:

Queens woman kept Korean kids as slaves for six years

42-year-old Sook Yeong Park is accused of abusing and enslaving two children in her house since 2010.



This is horrific. In Queens, a woman is accused of keeping two Korean children in her house as slaves for more than five years, forcing them to do housework and give her massages, manicures and pedicures, beating them and making them sleep on the floor, while cutting off all communication with their parents.

Queens Woman Allegedly Kept Two Korean Children As Slaves

42-year-old Sook Yeong Park is charged with labor trafficking, third-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a child. According to the district attorney, Park brought a 10-year-old girl and her 8-year-old brother to the United States in 2010, confiscated their passports and effectively enslaved them.

Disturbing letter says "wrong" victim was slashed in Queens

16-year-old JiaJia Liang, slashed in the face and neck, was apparently not the intended target.



What the freaking hell? In Queens, a note found on a vandalized car this week apologizes for the slashing attack on a teenage girl last month and admits that the victim was not the intended target.

Letter Admits Wrong Victim Was Slashed In Whitestone, Queens, Threatens Intended Target

16-year-old JiaJia Liang was slashed in the face while she was on her way to school last month in Whitestone. Surveillance video showed the 11th grader, who is an exchange student from China, approached from behind and attacked by a man wearing a surgical mask and gloves. He had apparently been following her.

But a letter from the supposed attacker, left in the windshield of a vandalized car on Monday night, says that the "wrong" person was attacked, and promised that the correct teen would soon lose her "beautiful face." The intended target was apparently another 16-year-old girl who lived in the same house as Liang.

Teenager slashed in the face on her way to school

Police are searching for a masked man who slashed a 16-year-old in Queens.



What the hell is going on in New York with these random knife attacks? In Queens, police are looking for the masked man who slashed a 16-year-old girl in the face while she was on her way to school.

Teenage Girl Slashed on Her Way to School

Police say the 11th grader, who is an exchange student from China, was walking to school in Whitestone on Wednesday morning when she was attacked by a man wearing a surgical mask and gloves.

The man approached the victim from behind, pushed her and slashed her in the face twice with a box cutter, once from her ear to throat and another part of the face. He had apparently been following her.

A nearby resident's security camera showed the suspect chasing the girl from behind and then running away:

New York State Assemblyman thwarts purse-snatcher

Queens assemblyman Ron Kim chased down and tackled a street robber in Flushing.



People, what has your local elected official done for you today? This one catches street robbers! In Flushing, a would-be purse-snatcher was thwarted and caught -- tackled, no less -- by a New York state assemblyman.

State assemblyman stops would-be purse snatcher in Queens

Ron Kim, a two-term State Assemblyman from Queens, was walking on the sidewalk in Flushing on Thursday when he saw a woman being robbed. A former high school and college football player, he jumped into action, chasing down the robber and tackling him -- all while on the phone with 911.

Racist graffiti found etched on sidewalk in Flushing

Sometimes, you can encounter hate while just going for walk. Just look down.



Sometimes, you can encounter hate while just going for walk. You don't even to see or talk to anyone. Just look down at the ground and there it is. Like this week in New York, where anti-Asian graffiti was found scratched into sidewalk cement outside a Queens apartment building.

The message read, "ALL YOU CHINK GO BACK TO CHINA!!!"

Racist Remark Found Etched In Sidewalk Outside Flushing Apartment Building

The vandalism, which was carved into wet cement on the sidewalk outside of the Cherry Manor Condos in Flushing, made local news when it was brought to the attention of City Councilman Peter Koo via social media.

The councilman's office contacted the building owner and the city's Department of Transportation, which dispatched a crew to buff out the sidewalk on Tuesday morning, removing the vandalism

Low-income students banned from school carnival

Kids who didn't pay a $10 fee were forced to sit out on the end-of-the-year festivities.



This heartbreaking news out of a Queens public school has New Yorkers in an uproar... PS 120 in Flushing recently held a carnival for its students, but kids whose parents didn't pay a $10 fee were forced sit out on the fun. Most of the students who were excluded from the carnival are from poor Chinese immigrant families.

No pay, no play! Poor kids banned from school carnival

Nearly 900 kids, from pre-K to fifth grade, took turns participating in the end-of-the-year carnival, enjoying inflatable slides, a bouncing room, a teacup ride and sweet treats. Meanwhile, more than a hundred of their classmates, unable to pay the ten bucks, were forced to sit in the school auditorium and watch a Disney movie.

According to the New York Post, Principal Joan Monroe insisted on getting accurate tallies of who paid and who didn't, and refused to bend her policy because it wouldn't be "fair" to those who paid the fee. Try explaining that to the poor kids who were left out.

Video shows McDonald's employee attacking customer

Korean American community groups are calling for a boycott of the restaurant.



In New York, several Korean American community organizations are calling for a boycott of a McDonald's restaurant in Queens after an employee was caught on video hitting a Korean patron with a broomstick, and allegedly refusing service and shouting, "We don't serve coffee to people like you!"

Korean-Americans Seek Boycott After an Attack in a McDonald's in Queens

The incident occurred last February at the McDonald's location on Main Street in Flushing. The customer, 62-year-old James Jin Kim claimed that the employee, Rooshi Sajjad, attacked him after he complained about the slow pace of service. In response, the employee yelled at Mr. Kim, and told him "Get out of my restaurant!" When Mr. Kim began recording video on his phone, Sajjad attacked him with a broom handle.

The restaurant's security cameras caught the incident on video:

Family of three killed in Flushing murder-suicide

Man fatally stabs wife and son before setting home on fire



Some tragic news out of New York, where a man fatally stabbed his wife and teenage son before setting their Flushing apartment on fire and slashing his own throat in a grisly murder-suicide.

In Queens, a Triple Killing Shows Signs of Financial Strife

Firefighters discovered the bodies of Lee Joon, his wife Lee Sung and their 15-year-old son Brian Lee in the living room of their sixth-floor apartment early Tuesday morning. Mr. Lee was found with a suicide note in his pocket, hand-written in Korean, complaining of "too many problems."

Those who knew Mr. Lee, who worked as a tractor-trailer driver, were aware that his family had been dealing with serious financial setbacks.

Man arrested in hate crime hit and run

Driver called Sikh victim a "terrorist" before running him over with his truck



Update on this case... In New York, police have arrested a man in connection with the hate crime attack on a Sikh man who was seriously injured after being run over and dragged by a pickup truck.

Driver Accused of Calling Sikh Man a Terrorist, Mowing Him Down With Truck

55-year-old Joseph Caleca is accused of mowing down 29-year-old Sandeep Singh with his truck last month in Queens. The two men apparently got into a verbal altercation in which Caleca called Singh a "terrorist" before hitting him with his truck, dragging him several feet and driving away.

Sikh man attacked by teenagers in hate crime

34-year-old victim was assaulted and called "Osama bin Laden"


News of yet another hate crime out of New York City last week, where a Sikh man on Roosevelt Island was harassed and attacked by a group of teens who assaulted him and called him "Osama bin Laden."

Teens attack Sikh man, call him 'Osama Bin Laden' in Roosevelt Island hate crime

The 34-year-old victim, who wishes to remain anonymous, was with his mother walking to dinner when they were confronted by a group of approximately ten teenagers who called them "Osama bin Laden" and told them to "go back to your country.The man was surrounded and punched in the face and in the back of the neck.

Here is a statement from the victim:

Man run over by truck in racist attack

The Sikh Coalition is calling for the incident to be investigated as a hate crime



Some disturbing news out of New York, where a man is in critical condition after being run over by a pickup truck and dragged nearly thirty feet following a racially charged altercation with the driver.

Father run over outside Ozone Park, Queens office

29-year-old Sandeep Singh was crossing the street late Tuesday night in Ozone Park when the driver a white pickup pulled up and yelled a racial slur at him and his friends. Annoyed, Singh hit the truck with his hand and exchanged words with the driver, who got out of the vehicle holding something in his hand.

As the argument escalated, the driver got back into his truck. When Singh stepped in front of the vehicle to stop him from leaving -- he wanted to call the police -- the driver started the truck and ran over him.

In surveillance footage, Singh is seen arguing with the driver. A few minutes later, when he tries to stop the truck from leaving, he is struck and dragged in the street for some distance. Here's the local news report:

Group of robbers targeting Asian victims in Queens

One of the suspects was caught on video



Asians, watch your back... In New York City, police are asking for the public's help finding a group of robbers responsible for a recent series of attacks targeting Asian people. Two to four suspects may be responsible for at least five violent street robberies in South Richmond Hill, Queens. All of the victims have been Asian.

Gang of robbers targeting Asians in Queens: NYPD

In all of the incidents, the suspects targeted Asian victims, primarily in the area of Liberty Avenue and 125th and 126th streets in Queens. The group approaches an unsuspecting target, assaults the victim, takes items -- including credit cards and cash -- and runs away.

The group has been linked to at least five robberies:

Peace brokered between McDonald's and Elderly Koreans

Flushing restaurant reaches agreement limiting number of hours customers can sit



It seems a little silly that a congresswoman and state legislators had to get involved to settle the much-publicized dispute between a McDonald's location in Queens and a group of elderly Korean patrons who refused to leave in a timely fashion. But that's what it took. They've apparently made peace.

Elderly Patrons End Dispute With a McDonald's in Queens

The Flushing fast food restaurant has become a regular gathering place for local Korean seniors who take up seats and stay for hours, much to the management's dismay. The situation has escalated in recent months, and police have actually been called in to remove customers. And now the community has gotten involved.

But it seems they've reached an agreement. Management has agreed to ease the 20-minute seating limit during off-peak hours and post signs stating the policy in Korean and Mandarin. In turn, the seniors will give up their seats during the busy hours if other diners are looking for a place to sit. Boycott averted.

McDonald's versus the Elderly Sitting Koreans

Flushing McDonald's is the happening hot spot for Korean seniors, much to restaurant's dismay



A McDonald's in Queens has become the unlikely site of a cranky conflict between the fast food restaurant and a group of elderly Korean patrons. The McDonald's, located in Flushing, says the group drives away business by sitting for hours. Seems like a silly thing to quarrel about, but the New York Times has taken notice:

Fighting a McDonald’s in Queens for the Right to Sit. And Sit. And Sit.

Whether the restaurant likes it or not, that McDonald's location has become a regular gathering place for local Korean seniors -- and a growing problem for the restaurant, which says the patrons who colonize the seats on a daily basis are quashing business, taking up tables for hours. The group, however, says they are paying customers who are entitled to take their time.

The situation has reportedly escalated in recent months. Harsh words exchanged, coffee spilled, and cops called to the scene. Doesn't this McDonald's know that you don't mess with elderly Koreans?

The Saddest Sex(?) Ad Ever

This pathetic excuse for a flyer was supposedly found on a sidewalk in Downtown Flushing.

I don't know who made this sign, or what kind of goods or services it purports to offer (I have an idea), or if it's even real (doubt it). But I laugh just imagining that some enterprising person couldn't or wouldn't bother with a computer -- this was going to be a decidedly hand-drawn effort. I don't even what to know what happens if you call this number.

UPDATE: As suspected, this is some kind of joke. A joke on somebody's momma.