NYPD investigates NYC hate crime stabbings as antisemitism surges
New York City is confronting a rise in antisemitic hate crimes as the NYPD investigates two Midtown stabbings near Central Park. Former FBI Special Agent Nicole Parker described the threats facing the Jewish community as “disproportionately high.” Separately, the Secret Service has reported an “unprecedented” 40% increase in overall threats since January, intensifying security concerns for public officials.
A Brooklyn woman accused of stalking a rabbi before allegedly stabbing him with a syringe in Manhattan’s Diamond District is also accused of attacking another man roughly two hours earlier, according to police.
Police confirmed to News Outlet that Anna Mochalova, 32, was arrested Saturday evening. She faces eight counts each of assault and menacing, as well as two counts each of aggravated harassment and criminal possession of a weapon.
Manhattan Shomrim Safety Patrol said the arrest was aided by its volunteers, the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force, Shomrim groups in Crown Heights and Queens, and information provided by members of the public.
Surveillance footage shows the area outside Diamond District businesses during the Oct. 21 confrontation involving a rabbi who police say was stabbed. (Manhattan Shomrim Safety Patrol)
“The suspect wanted for Wednesday’s two hate crime assaults in Midtown Manhattan is now in custody,” the organization said in a post on X.
Mochalova’s arrest came after Manhattan Shomrim urged witnesses to come forward with security-camera footage, dashcam recordings or cellphone video from the Diamond District.
Manhattan Shomrim released this surveillance image of the suspect in the Oct. 21 attack on a rabbi in Manhattan’s Diamond District. (Manhattan Shomrim Safety Patrol)
The first assault occurred around 5:50 p.m. Wednesday near West 45th Street and Avenue of the Americas, police said.
A 37-year-old man told officers that someone intentionally bumped into him. After he confronted the person, the attacker struck his forearm with a sharp object, leaving him with a laceration, according to police.
Manhattan Shomrim announced the arrest of Anna Mochalova in connection with two Midtown assaults. (Manhattan Shomrim Safety Patrol)
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The assailant ran from the scene on foot. The injured man declined medical treatment, police said.
Approximately two hours later, officers responded to another reported stabbing outside 15 West 47th Street. Authorities said a 26-year-old man was approached and stabbed in the back with an unidentified sharp object.
The victim was transported to Bellevue Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition.
The New York Post reported that the second victim was a rabbi and that a syringe was used in the attack. However, police did not say in their statement to News Outlet whether the weapon was a syringe or what it might have contained.
According to the Post, surveillance footage released by Manhattan Shomrim appears to show the suspected attacker following the rabbi around a parked car as he tried to keep away from her before the stabbing.
The rabbi told the outlet that he believes he was targeted because of his appearance.
“I never met that person before,” he said. “She passes by other people. I’m visibly Jewish.”
The rabbi returned to the neighborhood the following day to continue his Jewish outreach, the Post reported. He said the example of his grandparents, who survived the Holocaust, gave him the resolve to go back.
“They went on to build a Jewish home after the Holocaust,” he told the outlet. “If they could survive, I must go back to spread the light.”
Advocacy group StopAntisemitism also condemned the reported attack.
“What has happened to NYC, a once safe haven for Jews?” the group wrote on X.
The attacks come as confirmed hate crimes across New York City rose nearly 13% during the first nine months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to NYPD figures.
Anti-Jewish incidents accounted for more than half of the city’s 463 confirmed hate crimes. Police recorded 245 anti-Jewish hate crimes through September, up from 242 during the same period in 2025.
The NYPD confirmed its Hate Crime Task Force is investigating both incidents.
