NEW YORK – A man pleaded guilty Tuesday to a federal hate crime conspiracy charge in a series of anti-Semitic assaults in New York City, prosecutors said.
Saadah Masoud, 29, of Staten Island faces up to five years in prison after the March 3 sentence.
Masoud was arrested in June after authorities said he followed, beat and dragged away a counter-protester, who was draped in an Israeli flag, during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in April near the Israeli consulate in Manhattan.
Prosecutors say he also admitted to assaulting a man wearing a yarmulke in June 2021 and a person wearing a Star of David necklace the month before.
Manhattan federal prosecutor Damian Williams said Masoud “deliberately targeted three victims because of their religion and national origin.”
A message requesting comment was sent to Masoud’s attorney.
