What you should know
- A New York City man will face hate crime murder charges in the death of a Chinese immigrant who was brutally attacked in April 2021 while collecting cans in East Harlem, and died of his injuries eight months later.
- Yao Pan Ma, 61, died on December 31, eight months after he was brutally attacked by Jarrod Powell, according to the district attorney.
- The attack drew national attention as part of a surge in anti-Asian hate crimes in New York and across the country.
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NEW YORK — A New York City man will face hate crime murder charges in the death of a Chinese immigrant who was brutally attacked in April 2021 while collecting cans in East Harlem, dying of his injuries eight months later.
Yao Pan Ma, 61, died on December 31, police said. The attack drew national attention as part of a surge in anti-Asian hate crimes in New York and across the country. Jarrod Powell, 50, of New York City, was previously charged with attempted murder, felony assault and hate crimes in the case.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said Thursday that those charges have now been upgraded to second-degree murder as a hate crime.
“As alleged, Jarrod Powell targeted Mr. Ma for no reason other than his race,” District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement. “Tragically, our office is currently prosecuting 33 anti-Asian bias-motivated hate crime cases – unfortunately, the most we have had since our Hate Crimes Unit was established in 2010.”
Powell attacked Ma from behind, knocking him to the ground and repeatedly kicking him in the head before fleeing the scene, prosecutors say. Surveillance video released by police appears to show an attacker stomping on Ma’s head.
A family representative told The Associated Press that Ma never regained consciousness after the attack and that his condition continued to deteriorate over time. Ma she was in and out of multiple facilities over the last eight months and ultimately died at a long-term care facility run by The New Jewish Home.
Ma and his wife immigrated to the United States in October 2018 from China, where Ma was a chef. After coming here, Ma got a job as a general kitchen assistant at a Chinese restaurant, making cakes and doing other kitchen duties. However, when the pandemic hit, Ma lost his job when the restaurant closed during the city lockdown.
That prompted Ma and his wife, who also lost her job as a home health aide, to collect returnable bottles and cans to generate extra money for food, the representative said.
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