Cops are looking for four men who allegedly attacked a business owner on Mermaid Avenue near West 17th Street Saturday afternoon.
Authorities say the gang entered Asiri Convenience & Smoke Shop at 2:20 p.m., directed ethnic slurs toward Jamal Sawaid, 58, and punched him in the face. One of the men hit Sawaid with a metal pipe, cops said.
The attackers fled by van in an unknown direction.
Sawaid was treated at NYU Langone Hospital-Brooklyn and has returned to work.
The Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating the incident.
Anyone with information can call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-8477 (or 1-888-577-4782 for Spanish). Tips can also be submitted at nypdcrimestoppers.com or on Twitter at @NYPDTips.
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