Jewish assault victim: ‘It won’t change my feelings towards Muslim community’

The Jewish victim of an assault in Stamford Hill has said it will “not change his feelings one iota” towards the Muslim community – as police search for the assailant.

Jacob Lipchitz, 64, was attacked last Wednesday by a visibly Muslim individual while walking to shul. He was knocked unconscious and taken to hospital with a broken ankle, as authorities scoured CCTV footage to find the perpetrator.

The alleged assailant also appears in footage of two other incidents, all of which are being treated as hate crimes against the local strictly Orthodox community. Police said a 30-year-old man was hit on the head with a bottle and a 14-year-old boy was struck with a newspaper, before Mr Lipchitz was attacked last week.

Speaking to Jewish News about the incident, Mr Lipchitz said he had been attacked so viciously, that he had “no idea” what happened.

“That’s the crazy part. I was told that I mustn’t see the video [of the incident] for var ious reasons..”

“I was on the way to synagogue in the evening and then all of a sudden I am on the floor. I woke up laying down” before he explains Jewish emergency responders at Hatzolah “hauled me up on to a chair. They started to examine me and told me what my injuries were”, before taking him to Homerton hospital.

The grandfather said initially he didn’t realise he had been assaulted. A little boy on a scooter he said, “started telling people someone hit me.

“By Friday afternoon one of my grandchildren went to the synagogue, checked the CCTV, and that’s when the attack came to light.”

Asked whether it was his first experience of antisemitism, he said: “We all have [come across it], but not from Muslim people as such. Certainly not in Stamford Hill. We generally live in harmony with them. We work together.”

Despite the assault, he said: “I’m not concerned, I’m not going to be worried or something ”, but that his friends and family do feel a “heightened sense of concern, especially as long as this blighter is at large.”

After police released an appeal to track down the alleged perpetrator, officers visited the victim in his home yesterday.

He said the attack was “really out of the ordinary” in terms of community relations.

“It’s not representative of the Muslim community. We get on very well with them. This is almost certainly a lone wolf, and it will not affect one iota as far as I’m concerned, my feelings about the local Muslim community.”

The Metropolitan Police has so far not made any arrests.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call police via 101 quoting reference Cad 4492/20Aug.