Manhattan prosecutors say the man accused of stabbing two men on the Upper West Side in July was motivated by antisemitism in a four-count indictment announced on Tuesday.
Raul Morales, 51, is being charged with attempted murder as a hate crime, assault as a hate crime, and attempted assault as a hate crime. According to prosecutors, Morales stabbed a 57-year-old Asian American man and a 50-year-old Jewish man on July 23 near two Upper West Side synagogues.
“Since the initial arrest, my office has continued to thoroughly investigate this matter and uncovered additional evidence alleging the defendant specifically harbors antisemitic views,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said. “This case is a prime example of how hate crimes make all of us less safe.”
Law enforcement officials said Morales’ motivation for the alleged violent act was that he believed the men to be Jewish.
“As alleged, Raul Morales violently assaulted two innocent New Yorkers for no other reason than his belief they were Jewish,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch.
Prosecutors said at around 1:31 p.m., Morales approached the Asian American man from behind and stabbed him in the back while he was walking on West 84th Street, just half a block from a synagogue. During the attack, the man heard Morales yell “Allahu akbar” before fleeing down the block, according to the criminal complaint. Minutes later, while Morales was walking past the synagogue on West 83rd Street and Central Park West, a second person heard him allegedly yell “Justice for Islam,” prosecutors said.
Then, around 12 minutes after the first stabbing, Morales allegedly approached the Jewish man, who was wearing a kippah and was near a second synagogue near West 86th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, and stabbed him in the chest with a screwdriver. A witness followed Morales as he fled to his apartment just blocks away and heard him allegedly yell “Allahu akbar.”
The victims were rushed to the hospital and treated for their injuries. The first victim still had the knife lodged in his back and had to have it surgically removed, while the second suffered a puncture wound to his chest, prosecutors said.
According to the prosecutors, police officers tracked Morales to his apartment, where he initially refused to come out but eventually surrendered.
The DA’s office said an investigation has uncovered additional evidence illustrating alleged antisemitic bias, including text messages containing antisemitic sentiments recovered from Morales’ phone.
The Legal Aid Society, which is representing Morales in court, declined to comment.
The indictment came as Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Tuesday that $70 million will be distributed to protect community-based organizations vulnerable to hate crimes and attacks ahead of the upcoming Jewish High Holidays.
