Two Jewish men sprayed with fire extinguisher in possible NYC hate crimes: cops

Two Jewish men in Brooklyn were sprayed with a fire extinguisher and one of them was beat up in possible hate crimes over the weekend, according to police and footage.

The two disturbing attacks happened within minutes of each other just after 6 a.m. Sunday in Williamsburg, cops said.

Surveillance camera video of the first incident, released Monday by the NYPD, shows an attacker blast a 72-year-old man dressed in traditional Hasidic garb with the fire-quelling chemicals on Taylor Street and Lee Avenue.

The victim, who asked not to be named, told CBS2 a group approached him from behind and one of them chased him before spraying him in the head.

“One guy ran after me and he started to spray,” the victim told the station. “I tried to walk as fast as I can.” 

Footage then shows a group of apparent teenagers walking away from the attack, according to the NYPD, which is seeking help identifying the suspects.

The victim’s son told the station he believes the assailants were motivated by anti-Semitism.

“It was not only my father. It was another Jewish guy like two minutes after his attack. Definitely it’s a hate crime,” he told the station . 

In the second attack, an assailant also sprayed a 66-year-old Jewish man with a fire extinguisher then punched him on at the nearby intersection of Roebling and Third streets before fleeing, according to cops.

The incidents came just days after a Brooklyn synagogue with Holocaust survivors among its congregation was spray-painted with the word “Hitler” on its façade.