Detectives seek homeless man in beating of 74-year-old rabbi
Detectives are searching for a homeless man who they said punched and kicked a 74-year-old rabbi several times Monday as he walked along a residential street in the Fairfax District.
The random attack occurred about 8:30 a.m. in the 100 block of Formosa Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Police said they don’t believe the assault was a hate crime.
Surveillance video footage of the attack showed the rabbi walking in the neighborhood when he was suddenly pushed by another man.
The man then punched the rabbi repeatedly and kicked him until he fell.
Witnesses told KTLA-TV that the victim was a rabbi in the community, and had been walking home from a synagogue.
Alison Mayersohn, associate director for the Anti-Defamation League in Los Angeles, said the organization has been in contact with police.
“ADL was shocked by the images, caught on this very disturbing tape, of an elderly, identifiably Jewish man being the victim of a brutal assault,” she said.
Anyone with information about the suspect is urged to call detectives at (213) 922-8260.
Twitter: VeronicaRochaLA
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