NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – Three teenage boys were arrested on hate crime charges in connection to an anti-gay attack in Chelsea that left a 72-year-old man with a broken jaw, police said Tuesday.
The three suspects—a 16-year-old boy, 14-year-old boy and 13-year-old boy—were nabbed on the Lower East Side on Monday morning.
They each face charges of assault as a hate crime, gang assault and criminal possession of a weapon.
None of them have been identified because of their ages.
A fourth suspect remained at large Tuesday.
Police believe the trio was behind a brutal assault at West 17th Street and Ninth Avenue on the night of Sept. 15.
A group of teens called the victim an anti-gay slur around 10:15 p.m. and then beat him, according to cops.
"What are you doing around here, you f***ing f****t?” they asked him before the assault, according to the Daily News.
They not only punched and kicked him repeatedly but used various "items" to strike him on the head and body, police said.
They fled into 420 West 19th St. at the Fulton Houses, according to police.
The victim suffered a broken jaw and lacerations to his face and hands. He went to an area hospital by private means.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.