New York Police Hunting for Brooklyn Paintball Attackers Targeting Orthodox Jews
by Shiryn Ghermezian
Police are searching for the assailants behind a string of paintball attacks against Orthodox Jews in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, the New York Post reported on Tuesday.
Authorities noted that the first attacks were in March, when three Jewish teens were targeted. A 30-year-old man was attacked in April, and the latest incident occurred on June 29 when a 62-year-old Orthodox Jewish man was struck in the left shoulder by a paintball.
Surveillance cameras show the man standing with a group of others at 1:45 a.m. outside the Bondo’s 24 supermarket at Lee Avenue and Rodney Street in Williamsburg, CBS reported. In the footage, the victim, Chaim Klein, is seen flinching after hearing the sound of a shot as a paintball hits the awning above him.
Police said the assailants then drove off in a dark car. About five minutes later, Klein was struck with a paintball that nearly hit him in the chest, as he was walking seven blocks away from the supermarket.
Officers said the five paintball attacks may qualify as hate crimes. No arrests have been made in connection to any of the shootings but police are offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to an arrest.