16 THE COURIER SUN • JULY 11, 2013 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.couriersun.com Photo courtesy of NYPD Two men are wanted for allegedly assaulting a woman who videotaped an anti-gay altercation SEEK MEN WHO ASSAULTED WOMAN RECORDING HATE CRIME BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA ctumola@queenscourier.com A subway ride following Gay Pride festivities last month turned from celebration to hate when two men got into an altercation with a group of LGBTQ youth. Police are looking for the men for allegedly assaulting a woman as she videotaped the incident on her phone. The victim has had her own alert out for the suspects since July 2. She posted the video of the June 30 incident to YouTube in hopes of identifying and catching the two men. According to police and the description that accompanies the video, the woman was riding on a Queens-bound F Train around 11:30 p.m. following the Gay Pride celebration when she heard the two men making loud homophobic comments. “When a group of youth got on the train, the men proceeded to harass them, stating that the teens made them want to puke and that they would be killed if they were in Iran. The fi rst assailant then threatened to rape them, at which point I took out my phone to document the incident,” she wrote in a description accompanying the video. Much of the graphic language and commotion the woman describes is shown in the video as the situation escalates. “Seeing that he was being recorded, the fi rst assailant lunged at me, violently grabbing my arms while trying to steal away my phone,” she continued. “One of the youth took the phone from me temporarily to protect it and told the assailant he shouldn’t attack a woman. When the assailant threatened to punch me, I took the phone back and ran to the other side of the train to push the emergency button and alert the authorities. At this point the second assailant got up and came towards me, grabbing my body and hands to try and get the phone to destroy the evidence.” During the struggle, the victim suffered minor injuries to her hands and the suspects exited the train at the Roosevelt Avenue station, said police. A witness overheard the suspects saying they were heading to Jamaica and may be commuters who frequently take the same subway route, according to the victim. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS. All calls are strictly confi dential. In a statement, the New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP), a LGBTQ advocacy group, said it was “deeply disturbed” by the video footage and encourages the community to report any LGBTQ violence to their confi dential 24-hour hotline at 212-714-1141. From 2010 to 2012, the AVP has seen an increase in reports of anti-gay violence, according to AVP executive director Sharon Stapel. There has also been an increase in reports when comparing this May and June with the same period last year. The incident videotaped on the Queens-bound subway is one of several anti-gay hate crimes reported in the media in the past few months. But Stapel said more reports do not necessarily mean there has been a rise in crimes against the LGBTQ community. “The increased attention has also increased people’s ability to report the violence,” she said. on a Queens-bound F train on June 30. &Furniture Restoration Picture Frames *Ask For Carlos Monday -Saturday 8 AM- 6PM Or By Appointment 718-565-5717 www.Frameapic.com We’re Waiting For YOU North Shore Animal League America Has Over 300 Dogs, Cats, Puppies And Kittens Available! 25 Davis Ave., Port Washington, NY AnimalLeague.org OPEN EVERY DAY: Sun – Thurs: 10am – 9pm Fri – Sat: 10am – 10pm Like us on Home of the Mutt-i-gree® 516.883.7575 facebook.com/TheAnimalLeague TRY OUR 3 COURSE LUNCH SPECIALS TUES-FRI • 12 NOON-3 PM FREE HUMMUS $30.00 AND UP 116-35 Metropolitan Ave. Kew Gardens 718-850-7700 Visit Us At: www.rokanyc.com (DINE IN ONLY) TUESDAY- SUNDAY 12 NOON -11 PM (WE ARE CLOSED ON MONDAYS) WE ACCEPT ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS EXCEPT AMERICAN EXPRESS $11.99
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