A taxi driver tried to mow down a group of students and a rabbi outside a Jewish school in Brooklyn in an alleged attempt to “kill all the Jews.”
Asghar Ali, 58, a Pakistani immigrant with a history of mental illness, faces dozens of charges, including attempted murder, following the attack outside the school in Canarsie on Wednesday. The New York Post reported.
CCTV footage shows a taxi driver, later identified by police as Ali, reviving his engine as he drives onto the sidewalk near the Mesivta Nachlas Yakov school building.
He then chases a group of young men in an apparent attempt to run them over.
The group, which sought safety in the school building, claimed that as Ali chased them, he shouted, “I’m going to kill all the Jews.”
Taxi driver Asghar Ali, 58, allegedly tried to mow down a group of students and a rabbi outside a Jewish school in Brooklyn while shouting: ‘I’m going to kill all the Jews’
Surveillance camera footage shows a taxi driver, later identified by police as Ali, after he drove onto the sidewalk near the Mesivta Nachlas Yakov school building on Wednesday morning.
Ali first launched his attack by trying to hit a teenage boy who was talking on the phone while standing at Glenwood Road and East 55 Street, a rabbi told the newspaper.
He then allegedly drove around the block, on the wrong side of East 56 Street, and drove his car toward a group of 30 to 40 students dressed in traditional Orthodox attire.
Ali drove back to the school, where he then drove his car toward two more students and a rabbi. The victims ran into the building before they were hit.
The taxi driver fled the scene but was later found by members of the Shomrim Safety Patrol who contacted the NYPD.
Police took Ali into custody and he was taken to Coney Island Hospital. He faces several charges, including attempted murder, attempted assault and hate crimes.
Officers do not believe the attack is terror-related and have no evidence Ali has links to radical groups, the newspaper said.
The NYPD has identified five victims in the attack, including three 18-year-olds, a 41-year-old and a 44-year-old. No one was injured during the incident.
One of Ali’s alleged victims is seen running into the school for safety during the attack
In the photo, Ali is driving near the school around 11.25 am on Wednesday
Ali, who has lived in the U.S. for more than two decades, is considered an “emotionally disturbed person,” the Post reported, citing law enforcement sources.
He has reportedly already had four arrests, including one for false identification.
He also claims to be a professional taxi driver, but does not have a TLC driver’s license.
The NYPD has been contacted for additional information and comment. DailyMail.com attempted to contact the Mesivta Nachlas Yakov school, but no one was immediately available.