A 21-year-old Queens man has been indicted for assault and robbery after he allegedly attacked a 68-year-old East New York man who had come to the aid of a woman being accosted by the young man.
According to an investigation and surveillance footage, Zamori Simmons repeatedly punched the man until he fell to the ground and then stomped on his head, ripped a necklace off his neck and stole his cell phone in the July attack, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said. Simmons then fled on a Citi Bike.
The victim lost consciousness and was treated in Brookdale Hospital for a broken wrist, multiple orbital fractures and other injuries.
After the attack, which happened just after 9:00am on July 24 on the corner of Pitkin Avenue and Barbey Street in East New York, video surveillance was disseminated to the media. An anonymous tipster identified Simmons, who surrendered on August 5 and was placed under arrest.
"This defendant allegedly unleashed an unprovoked and violent assault on an elderly man and continued to beat and rob him as he laid unconscious," Gonzalez said.
"Such abhorrent and cruel behavior shocks the conscience, and we will now work to make sure that the defendant pays a steep price for his criminal actions." Simons has been charged with second- and third-degree assault, second- and third-degree robbery and other related charges. He was ordered held on $20,000 bond or $10,000 cash bail and to return to court on October 14, 2021. The defendant faces up to seven years in prison if convicted of the top count.
