Bronx man indicted for hate crimes after allegedly punching Hispanic woman in face and yelling anti-Hispanic slurs, Brooklyn DA says

By Liam Reilly, CNN

A Bronx man was indicted for hate crimes Tuesday after he allegedly assaulted a woman and yelled anti-Hispanic slurs at her, according to prosecutors.

The victim, a 72-year-old woman, was allegedly assaulted while speaking in Spanish and English on the phone on January 18, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office said.

The woman was waiting for a train in a subway station when the defendant, Lamont Dinkins, 43, allegedly cursed at her, saying, “Stop speaking in Spanish, you Spanish b*tch,” the DA’s office said in a news release.

Dinkins then allegedly punched the woman repeatedly in the face and head before boarding a southbound R train, according to the news release. He was arrested at the Barclays Center, which was the next stop.

Dinkins was indicted for hate crimes Tuesday. He is charged with second-degree assault, second-degree attempted assault, third-degree assault as a hate crime, third-degree assault, third-degree menacing as a hate crime, third-degree menacing and second-degree aggravated harassment.

He is being held on $50,000 bail and was ordered to return to court April 1.

CNN was unable to reach Dinkins’ attorney, Martha Lineberger with Legal Aid.

“Bias-motivated attacks will not be tolerated in Brooklyn, which prides itself on its diversity and inclusion,” District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said. “This alleged attack on a Spanish-speaking senior citizen was particularly egregious because of the victim’s vulnerability and the defendant’s hateful language. We will now seek to hold him accountable for his alleged actions.”

The New York City Police Department Hate Crimes Dashboard shows that between January 1, 2021, and December 29, 2021, there were eight confirmed incidents of hate crimes against people who identified as Hispanic, with four arrests.

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