New York Jewish Week via JTA — Two men pleaded guilty this week to the 2021 assault of Joey Borgen, a Jewish man who was brutally beaten on his way to a pro-Israel rally in Manhattan.
Waseem Awawdeh, one of five men who punched, kicked, used crutches and pepper sprayed him, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to attempted second-degree assault, a hate crime and criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office confirmed this to New York Jewish Week.
The information was relayed by the Jewish Insider.
The beating, which came amid a surge in anti-Semitism sparked by Israel’s 2021 war with Hamas in Gaza, drew national attention.
The ensuing court battle drew fierce criticism from New York Jewish community activists who said prosecutor Alvin Bragg was showing too much leniency to Awawdeh.
This month, Borgen’s father, Barry, was invited by the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee to testify at a hearing in New York on Bragg and violent crime in Manhattan.
Bragg’s office said Awawdeh will serve 18 consecutive months in prison – 12 for attempted assault and 6 for criminal detention – and his sentencing will be handed down on June 13.
Another defendant, Faisal Elezzi, pleaded guilty to attempted third-degree assault and a hate crime on Monday. His sentence to three years of probation will be pronounced on June 8 and he will have to undergo programs to fight against prejudice.
Awawdeh and Elezzi had to issue a public apology.
Awawdeh’s sentence is longer than the six-month plea deal Bragg reportedly offered him months ago, which shocked Borgen, his relatives and Jewish organizations, who demanded a heavier sentence.
Borgen told New York Jewish Week that he was still “unsatisfied” with the sentences handed down, which he said lacked harshness. He recalled Awawdeh reportedly saying he would “do it again.”
Illustrative: Pro-Palestinian protesters attack Jewish customers at Manhattan restaurants, May 20, 2021. (Screenshot/Twitter)
Borgen was wearing a yarmulke and was heading to a pro-Israel demonstration on the day Hamas and Israel announced a ceasefire after 11 days of conflict when he was attacked in the street in Midtown on May 20 2021 by five people. Awawdeh and Elezzi were among them.
Awawdeh reportedly shouted “dirty Jew” as he punched Borgen, who was hospitalized and required wrist surgery.
A two-year legal battle ensued. Manhattan prosecutors said in a statement that “anti-Semitic hatred has no place in Manhattan.”
“Following a thorough investigation by our services, the defendants pleaded guilty to the hate crime and apologized,” the statement said.
“We will continue to hold the other defendants to account, who face a heavy prison sentence if found guilty. »
The Borgen case is one of the few hate crime complaints filed in Manhattan.
According to New York police statistics, borough police stations received 241 hate crime complaints in 2022 and made 118 arrests.
Bragg’s office told the New York Jewish Week that 92 hate crimes were prosecuted in Manhattan last year. By the end of March, his office was handling 20 hate crime cases related to anti-Semitism for that year.
Reports published last year by The City, a local media outlet, revealed that most hate crime charges were dropped before sentencing.
The next hearing for the other three defendants – Mohammed Othman, Mohammed Said Othman and Mahmoud Musa – will take place on May 11.
2023-04-27 08:39:47
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