On Sunday morning, a 68-year-old lady was brutally assaulted and robbed as she made her way to church in Jamaica Hills, New York. A relative said that the lady is still in serious condition after suffering a skull fracture.
At 8:20 in the morning, the woman was hit in the face by an unknown assailant as she was making her way up the front steps of St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church. The elderly woman lost her footing and fell down the flight of steps after taking the punch. After that, the robber violently ripped away her handbag, which included cash, her phone, her credit cards, and the keys to her vehicle. Using the victim’s 2006 Nissan Altima, the perpetrator fled the scene of the crime in an unknown direction.
Emergency medical services took the lady to New York-Presbyterian Queens Hospital, where her condition was deemed serious. The New York Police Department has published security footage of a man they describe as medium-built, 5 feet, 8 inches tall, and with a dark complexion; they say he is between 18 and 25. His most recent sighting had him donning a red hooded sweatshirt layered under a black jacket, black jeans, a black face mask, and red-trimmed Air Jordan footwear black in color.
As is her Sunday ritual, the lady was making her way to church. The lady landed on her back after a three-step tumble, as seen on security camera video. She writhed in pain as the suspected thief ran away after emptying her pocketbook. Before driving off in her vehicle, the thief stole $300 and her phone.
The family was notified that the New York Police Department was able to collect a fingerprint from his aunt’s vehicle and has a strong suspicion about the suspect’s identity. With 72 reports so far this year, an increase of 11% from 61 reports at the same time last 2023, assaults in the 107th Precinct have been trending upward.