71-Year-Old Punched Defending His Mother In Queens Mall: NYPD

QUEENS — A man punched a 71-year-old man who was trying to defend his mother at the Queens Center Mall earlier this month, police said.

A man told the 88-year-old woman to get up from a seat in a communal area of the mall so he could sit down on July 5 about 3 p.m. when her 71-year-old son intervened, the NYPD said.

The man punched the 71-year-old son in the face and kicked him several times before he fled into JC Penney, authorities said.

The 71-year-old sustained lacerations to the face and head and was taken to Forest Hills Hospital from the mall located at 90-15 Queens Boulevard, cops said.

Police released images of the attacker on Monday.

Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/, or on Twitter @NYPDTips.