The suspect who allegedly attacked a 65-year-old Asian woman in Manhattan this week has been identified as 38-year-old Brandon Elliot, a man who was already on lifetime parole for fatally stabbing his mother in 2002 according to NBC News. Elliot, who was freed from prison in 2019, was arrested Wednesday and charged with multiple counts, including hate crime, attempted assault as a hate crime, assault and attempted assault.

Thanks to assistance from the public and excellent investigative work by @NYPDHateCrimes Detectives, the individual wanted for Monday’s assault of a 65 year-old Asian female, at 360 West 43rd St, was arrested and charged with Felony Assault as a Hate Crime. pic.twitter.com/ZQRVGZEAb2

— NYPD Hate Crimes (@NYPDHateCrimes) March 31, 2021

Police released video of the attack, which took place Monday at a luxury apartment in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan. The footage showed a man kicking the woman in her stomach and causing her to fall to the ground. Police said the suspect then made anti-Asian statements while stomping on the woman's head multiple times. 

"The victim sustained a serious physical injury and was removed by EMS to NYU Langone Hospital," police said in a statement.

The Brodsky Organization, which manages the luxury apartments, suspended the property's staff members who were seen on video as they witnessed the incident and failed to come to the woman's aid. 

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio described the incident as “absolutely disgusting and outrageous.” He also condemned the witnesses, saying their failure to act was “absolutely unacceptable.”

As Blavity previously reported, the Asian community has become more vulnerable to hate crimes since the first detected COVID-19 case was traced to Wuhan, China last year. Former president Donald Trump fueled the bigotry with inflammatory remarks, referring to the coronavirus as the “Chinese virus."

The series of attacks against the community include the shooting-spree in Atlanta area earlier this month, which took the lives of nine people, many of whom were Asian. 

According to research conducted by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, hate crimes decreased overall by 7% last year, but attacks against Asian people rose by nearly 150%.

NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said New York City and its surrounding areas plan to increase patrol in Asian communities amid the increase in attacks, ABC7 reported. 

"We are putting heavy uniformed presence, that's the bulk of the resources," he said. "Those are going into predominantly Asian communities in New York City: Flushing, Chinatown, parts of Sunset Park, Brooklyn. But really through the transit system."

Shea adds that police are looking out for all groups who are vulnerable to hate crimes. 

"That's the thing as we start coming out of Passover and now into Muslim high holy days and thinking of things of this sort," the commissioner said. "An attack on one group is an attack on all, and that's the thing we have to keep enforcing here. Whether it's anti-Black, anti-Asian, anti-Muslim, anti-Semitic, anti-LGBTQ, when New Yorkers come together and just say enough is enough, I think we are getting in the right direction."