A man was indicted on hate crime assault charges after he attacked two women at a midtown Manhattan subway station while shouting anti-Asian slurs, according to the district attorney.
Derrick Johnson was charged with two counts of third-degree assault as a hate crime and two counts of second-degree aggravated harassment for the incident that occurred at the Rockefeller Center subway station in the afternoon of May 8, District Attorney Alvin Bragg said.
Johnson allegedly threw an unknown liquid at the two victims, both women of Korean descent, after they entered the busy subway station. The 40-year-old then spit at one of them and hurled racially offensive remarks at them, including saying "I don’t know why you’re here," according to court documents and statements made in court.
Johnson, who lives in Manhattan, then charged at one of the women, causing her to fall to the ground, court documents stated. As a result, the woman suffered bruises to her arms and legs, as well as significant pain and swelling to her head and jaw.
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"The subway is central to our city, and riders of all backgrounds deserve safety when they travel,” said DA Bragg. “The rise of bias-driven crimes is unacceptable."
Attorney information for Johnson was not immediately available.
