ABC7
A NYC taxi driver was hit with a hate crime for allegedly vandalizing statues outside a Queens Catholic church, prosecutors said.
Jamshaid Choudhry, 44, of Hollis, was arrested Thursday night and charged with criminal mischief as a hate crime and other related crimes for allegedly decapitating a statue of a young Jesus outside of the Holy Family Roman Catholic Church in Fresh Meadows on June 30.
The twisted, caught-on-camera tantrum began casually.
for 42 years, according to the Diocese of Brooklyn. Diocese of Brooklyn
A sacrilegious scoundrel driving an SUV taxi pulled up to the front of the church around 5:30 a.m. and calmly crossed the street, before removing a shoe and charging toward white marble statues of Mary, Joseph and Jesus, according to police and footage released by the Diocese of Brooklyn.
The taxi driver swatted the heads of Mary and Joseph with his shoe, then turned his attention to Jesus and hacked at its head until it went spinning to the ground, the footage shows. He also allegedly spit on the religious statue, prosecutors said.
The suspect is then seen calmly walking off, shoe still in hand.
The statue stood outside the church for 42 years, according to the Diocese of Brooklyn, and the damage will cost $20,000 to repair, they said.
The Mary and Joseph statues made it out unscathed despite the beatdown.
“We will not tolerate unprovoked attacks, especially those driven by hate. Queens stands as a beacon of diversity and inclusivity, where freedom of religion and expression are celebrated as fundamental pillars of our democracy,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
Choudhry pled not guilty Friday at his arraignment in Queens Criminal Court and was released.