UNACCEPTABLE: 911 Call Unanswered By Police For Three Hours After Lubavitcher Attacked In Crown Heights

by CrownHeights.info

Would a police response time of three hours be acceptable to you?

An out-of-town Jewish family visiting Crown Heights was attacked Friday afternoon over a littering dispute, and the 911 call went unanswered for nearly three hours.

Nearing the end of their stay in Crown Heights Friday afternoon, the father of the visiting family took his children in their van to the Utica Ave Speedway gas station near Midwood Street in South Crown Heights, planning to give the rented vehicle it a quick cleaning before returning it to the rental company.

When he arrived, the father pulled up to the vacuums behind the gas station only to realize that they were out of order. Not to be deterred, he took a plastic bag and began collecting the discarded food wrappers and other garbage to throw in the trash.

As the father, with his children still in the car, was nearing the end of his cleaning job, he was approached by a group of people who ride the “Dollar Vans” that routinely park in the speedway parking lot.

According to the victim, the men demanded that he “pick up his trash”, pointing to a pile of garbage on the ground near his vehicle. The pile, with McDonald’s cartons and other non Kosher items, were obviously not his, and the man replied as much, pointing to the full bag of garbage in his hand.

The situation began to quickly escalate, with direct threats targeting the Jewish man and Jews in general. Realizing that the situation was incredibly dangerous, the Jewish man jumped back in his van and began driving away.

As the van attempted to leave, one member of the attacking group began running after the van and shattered the back window, sending glass shards spraying over multiple children in the vehicle. Fearing for his life, the Jewish father called 911 with the hope that they would come to his aid.

After two hours of waiting, another call to 911, and the threats and intimidation continuing, the father was forced to drive back to where he was staying with the police never having shown up.

Nearly three hours after the incident, the police finally responded, taking a report on the attack.

According to the family, one of the children in the van had been injured by the flying glass shards, although thankfully, the injury was minor.

It is not yet clear if the NYPD’s 71st Precinct, which is responsible for crime in the area, will be investigating the incident at all, or if the case will be sent to the Hate Crimes Task Force.