Police are on the hunt for a man who sucker-punched a 76-year-old New York woman in East New York.
Yvonne Small was attacked from behind at around 11:35 a.m. on Friday while walking on Alabama Avenue, and is believed to be the latest victim in the sometimes deadly "knockout game," police say.
The attack occurred shortly after a nearby rally held by activists condemning the violent "game" ended. A male suspect fled the scene and Small was taken to Brookdale Hospital, where she was treated for a head injury and later released.
According to the New York Police Department, there have been at least nine other attacks in the city linked to the knockout game, in which perpetrators pummel innocent, unsuspecting victims, hoping to render them unconscious with one punch.
On Nov. 22, police charged one man for punching a 24-year-old Jewish man. In response to that attack in Brooklyn, New York City Councilman David Greenfield told ABC station WABC-TV in New York that officials should send a message of "zero tolerance."
"That's why I called on the NYPD and District Attorney's Office to literally throw the book at these individuals and to charge them with many crimes, including hate crimes and gang assault, because that's what it is," Greenfield said.
Police said there have seven other similar attacks in Brooklyn and believe the motive may be related to anti-Semitism. The NYPD's hate crimes task force is investigating the cases. It was not clear whether the latest victim, Small, is Jewish like all of the nine other victims before her.
