Christopher Philippeaux, 26, of Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States was on a Metropolitan Transportation Authority shuttle bus near 118th Street and Liberty Avenue in Little Guyana, Queens, New York City on the morning of October 15, 2023. He was wearing a yellow winter coat.
At around 9:00 a.m., Philippeaux allegedly went up to a male passenger, 19, wearing a turban. The Manhattan man allegedly told the Sikh teen, “We don’t wear that in this country and take that mask off!”
Philippeaux allegedly punched the teenager in the head, face and back multiple times and tried to remove the victim’s turban. The victim suffered a minor cut and pain but refused medical attention at the scene.
After the attack, Philippeaux got off the bus and ran along Liberty Avenue. On October 16, 2023, the New York City Police Department released surveillance images of the suspect.
On October 19, 2023, Philippeaux was arrested by New York City Police Department officers. He was charged with assault as a hate crime.
On the morning of October 20, 2023, Philippeaux was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Queens Boulevard in Queens.
CONAN Daily 