Queens Teen Beaten For Wearing Turban In Hate Crime Bus Attack: NYPD

QUEENS, NY — A man brutally beat a Queens teen for wearing a turban and a COVID mask in an MTA bus, police said.

The suspected hate crime Sunday left a 19-year-old bus passenger with a cut to his head and pain, authorities said.

The attack unfolded about 9 a.m. when a stranger walked up to the turban-wearing teen on a bus near 118th Street and Liberty Avenue and began shouting at him, NYPD officials said.

"We don't wear that in this country and take that mask off!" the man yelled at the teen, police said.

The bile-filled attacker then tried to take the turban from the young man's head as he punched him in the back of his head, face and back, authorities said.

The man then ran from the bus along Liberty Avenue, police said. The teen refused further medical treatment at the scene, officials said.

Police described the attacker as a man between 25 and 35 years old, about 5 feet 9 inches tall, with brown eyes and black hair. He wore a yellow bubble jacket, blue jeans and sneakers.

People with information are asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or, for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). They can also submit tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/, or on Twitter @NYPDTips.