Police are seeking a pair of African American youths after surveillance video showed them launching a brutal sneak attack in Greenwich Village that left a 75-year-old man unconscious and seriously injured.
The New York Police Department released images of the surveillance video taken on Wednesday, just after 2 p.m. at 120 W. 14th Street, according to PIX 11.
Police say the video shows the two African Americans in their late teens or possibly early 20s stalking the elderly man. The male suspect is then seen running up and punching the older man in the head and kicking him in the face after the victim falls to the ground. Police also say the female suspect is seen acting as a lookout as her accomplice attacks the man.
The victim was left unconscious on the sidewalk and was later listed in stable condition at Lenox Hill Hospital.
Nothing was stolen from the victim, so police do not feel robbery was a motive for the attack, but the act is reminiscent of the odious “knockout game” in which African American teens run up behind an unsuspecting victim to punch them as hard as possible, with the goal of causing unconsciousness in the victim.
The male suspect is described as an African American with black hair with a red streak. He was wearing a white T-shirt and beige pants, toting a black and gray backpack. The female was wearing a green, slip-on dress with a hood. She also wore black sneakers.
Police have asked anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or visit www.nypdcrimestoppers.com. Citizens may also reach investigators by texting 274637 (CRIMES), then entering TIP577.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.