By Gus Saltonstall
Two women were arrested and charged with hate crimes after a confrontation on the Upper West Side over Israeli hostage posters led to a Star of David necklace being ripped off, police said on Monday.
Mehwish Omer, 26, and Stephanie Gonzalez, 25, were arrested on November 27 and November 20, respectively, and charged with a smattering of offenses, including hate crime/assault and attempted robbery, police said.
The charges stem from an incident on November 9, when a 41-year-old woman spotted two women removing Israeli hostage posters at the corner of Riverside Drive and West 82nd Street, police said. She verbally confronted the duo and began recording them, NYPD added.
The two women then attacked the 41-year-old, ripping a Star of David chain off her neck and knocking her cellphone out of her hands, police added.
Here are the specific charges for Gonzalez and Omer. The latter is an Upper West Side resident, police said.
Mehwish Omer
- Hate Crime/Assault
- Hate Crime/Criminal Mischief
Stephanie Gonzalez
- Attempted Robbery
- Hate Crime/Assault
A hate crime conviction can lead to up to 10 years in prison.
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Thank you to the NYPD for pursuing this.
Good! People have to see that their political beliefs do not extend to attacking the people with whom they disagree.
Why are the anti Arab crimes not reported?
They are. But you have to admit that the number of anti-semitic attacks in the city far outweigh the anti-islamic attacks, based on the reported statistics. Just my opinion, but I would feel way more comfortable walking around the city (and certainly world in general) with a kaffiyeh around my neck than a yarmalka and star of david.
To be fair, the highest-profile (alleged) hate crime against Arabs or Muslims in the city happened on the other side of the park (Stuart Seldowitz). Not WSR’s beat. I’m sure they would cover any attacks in the UWS.
Sarah,
There was this…https://nypost.com/2023/11/25/metro/mayor-eric-adams-rips-vile-show-of-antisemitism-at-nyc-school/
I’m not sure what you mean. WSR has certainly been covering anti-Semitic incidents on the Upper West Side–such as this very article! The article (if you can call it that, it’s the Post) you link to is about a Queens school.
Who fired the first shots on 10/7, and who killed the first babies?
So…what…it’s open season on Arabs and Muslims in the city now? For God’s sake, don’t let the terrorists bait you into degrading your own humanity.
How did you get to “open season on Arabs and Muslims” from “who fired the shots on 10/7”? Both antisemitism and anti-Arab hate crimes are repulsive. Calling out one is not advocating for the other.
To respond to the question of “why is there a lack of coverage anti-Arab crimes?” with “who murdered babies first?” obviously implies that the latter somehow excuses or explains the (supposed–as I said, I don’t think it’s the case) former. And you don’t have to look very far in the comments to find people glorying in the opportunity to embrace violence against Gazans because of October 7. It makes me extremely sad to see people succumbing to this mindset.
You’ve gotten so far off track from the fact that two women were aware, as they should have been, for attacking someone else.
Good news. Hate has no home here.
I agree with the sentiment but sadly that is not the case.
Why is there any question about it being a hate crime. They should both get ten years.
Sadly they will be released after a few hours and the DA will drop the charges
Where does it say that there’s any question about this being a hate crime? The article explicitly states that both were charged with at least one hate crime.
That won’t happen.
I’m glad she pressed charges. This hate is unacceptable ANYWHERE. These two people should be ashamed of themselves. But I’m sure they’re not. They no doubt think they’re, y’know, freedom fighters. I’m surprised their faces weren’t covered.
So which hate is acceptable?
🙂 Humour conquers all.
I am curious about something. While the two women were definitely guilty of asaault, and should be process legally for such, why are those putting up the posters not being summonsed for “postering,” which is also illegal? In fact, the two women had more of a right to take down the posters than the other woman had to challenge them for doing so.
I also wonder about another aspect here. Once all the hostages have been released (and they are being released now on a regular basis), who is going to take down all the zillions of posters? The people who put them up? Somehow I doubt that. And what about entire empty storefronts that have been covered entirely (every window, top to bottom), with posters that are now glued on instead of taped? Who is going to pay to remove those? The people who put them up? I doubt it. So they are going to make the landlords pay to have them removed. How polite.
I understand and support the cause. But I am capable of supporting more than one cause at the same time, and I support my neighborhood and community as well. That includes not turning the entire neighborhood into an eyesore (no matter how well-intentioned the purpose). But with emotions at such a high pitch, even “looking” wrong at one of the posters (much less making even a mildly criticizing comment) can provoke a strong, even violent reaction, Because I have personally seen FAR more assaults BY those putting up the posters ON those removing them than I have been, or even heard, of the latter.
“who is going to take down all the zillions of posters”?
Ian, how many Gazillions of time did I tell you not to exaggerate?
Ian, I know you have done a lot for this neighbhood, but wow! The posters are a really minor problem compared to antisemitic and Islamophobic hate crimes.
I’m more worried about who’s going to clean up all the defacement, such as the public library and all the other hateful graffiti littering so many of our buildings.
Ian, Was it also an eyesore when people hung posters of all those missing after the terrorist attacks on 9/11? Were you worried about the cleanup after that? Or is it just posters of Jews that bother you?
Ian, amazing. Another denier as I live and breathe. Would you like me to send you the video of the incident? It’s all on film including one of them verbally admitting guilt. The attackers were not provoked in any way. Would you like the photos of the victims face where they completely disfigured, her clawing her face and neck, hitting her eye and giving her a hemorrhage in the white of her eye? How about the bruises and scratches around her neck from where they ripped off her Star of David necklace? Do you need “proof” to support a victim? Making a statement such as yours about the validity of someone putting up posters vs tearing them down and who has rights vs who doesn’t, and the beauty of the neighborhood on a post about an antisemitic attack is completely beside the point and absolutely vile. This was a violent antisemitic hate crime that scarred a woman’s face. You should be ashamed of yourself for writing comments like these all over the place. (Yes we’ve seen your handiwork on I Love the Upper West Side). I will pray for you.
Praying clearly won’t work. If it did, the entire situation would not exist.
If you are worried about eyesores, there are a lot worse than posters on light posts in this neighborhood. Just compare it to 5 years ago and you’ll see posters are the least of our problems for the lack of a pristine or beautiful neighborhood. If it EVER gets back to where we were in 2017 and before, then we can worry about posters.
You have seen assaults and did you report them? There is not a lot of news of assaults by people putting up posters, just asking people not to take them down. Frankly, there are many more pressing issues that are taking place that are more harmful than some posters that mention innocent kidnapped people.
I suggest these ‘ladies’ come out in orange jumpsuits and clean everything up. And, they should be cleaning the NYPL’s recent ‘artwork’ that will cost us, patrons, $75,000 to remove.
Do the crime, clean the grime!
We can have a rational debate about the presence of these hostage signs all over the city. However, I highly doubt that the folks tearing them down are simply trying to beautify the neighborhood.
Tearing down these signs is a provocative and antisemitic action. Physically attacking someone for criticizing the tearing down of these signs is a criminal offense.
Enough said.
Ian, as someone quite concerned about the aesthetic deterioration of the UWS, thank you for this post. It took a long time to clean up the UWS, and only a couple of years to erase all those gains and slide back into grafitti and trash strewn everywhere. We must keep our neighborhood tidy. Not so long ago, it was pristine. As Ian recommends, let’s take this issue seriously.
Thank you. It seems that many people do not understand that one can care about more than one thing at the same time. One can care – very much – about the kidnapping of hostages by a terrorist group, and ALSO care about the neighborhood one actually lives in. They are not mutually exclusive, but many people seem to think they are.
I can assure you that if all the hostages are released then there will be people happily removing all the posters. Do we have a deal?
If you are seeing assaults, I assume you are calling the police and reporting it.
Or perhaps you aren’t really seeing assaults being perpetrated by people putting up posters.
Just like posters advertising guitar lessons, home cleaning services, and lost dogs, the posters will eventually be removed. I don’t think removing posters upon resolution of the hostage situation is a particularly worrisome concern. You may have noticed that there are other things happening around the city that actually harm people.
Thr people who put up lost dog and guitar lesson posters do sometimes (or did) face fines. They are easy for police to identify because their phone number is on the poster. With the hostage posters they’d have to be caught in the act.
Hey,, don’t come in here with common sense ! 😉
Lock. Them. Up.
I am glad that the victim received justice.
In Alvin Bragg’s New York, they will face zero meaningful consequences. The risk of prison, for this is essentially zero.
It would be great if WSR would follow up on the results of their trials (if they happen at all).
“Alvin Bragg’s New York?” It is clear where your political sympathies lie. Alvin Bragg is not a legislator, and is required to work within the ;laws that are legislated. So you are “attacking” the wrong person.
Have you found them guilty then ? Am not saying they are not, but that is why there is a judicial system, rather than a vigilante one.
There are Muslims who condemn Hamas, who think Islamic extremism is wrong, who aren’t religious, have spent much of their lives trying to distance themselves from Islam so they can be accepted in American society being keenly aware of the abuses of government power that happened during the Bush and Bloomberg years, who are 1000% against those ripping down the kidnapped by Hamas posters, who stand with Israel on what’s going on. However it is one of those people who I know of who got subject to Islamophobic harassment in the past, it is one of those people who also has a disability that was recently stopped and frisked by the NYPD right here on the Upper West Side and when they emailed and called Gale Brewer and Brad Hoylman’s office for help, they neither replied to the email nor answered the phone. Is this also acceptable? Should this be tolerated right here on the UWS?