The family of the Bronx man who was mugged and beaten over the weekend for $15, and died a few days later of his injuries, claim the attack may have been a hate crime. Family members and neighbors gathered last night outside the funeral home where services for 59-year-old Bimal Chanda, who was Bengali, were held. While police say there's no indication of a hate crime, Chanda's widow believes there had to be a different motive, since the two muggers brutally beat him, yet left his wallet filled with credit cards and $90 in cash, only taking $15 from his pocket: "I've been hearing things, from other family, friends and relatives, other Bengali people, they've been getting mugged on a daily basis, and it's really not acceptable," one family member told NBC.
Chanda was in the middle of moving out of his old apartment in Fordham last Saturday morning when he was attacked by two men who repeatedly struck him with a metal object. According to family friend Mohammad Solaiman Ali, Chanda was moving his wife Chaya and 16-year-old daughter Chaitalli because they were afraid of the neighborhood. "I talked to the community board, the police, but no one pays attention," Ali told the Daily News. "We have had a lot of people killed in this neighborhood in the last 6 months. They wanted to move because the area isn't changing. At 5 or 6 a.m., you can see prostitutes on every corner."
NYPD
“I am constantly looking over my shoulder,” neighbor Osvaldo Delabra told CBS. “Sometimes you’re even afraid if somebody’s coming into the building right behind.” Police released surveillance video of the suspects, who you can see above. They were described as black men, 20-to-25-years old, about 6-feet and 180 pounds. Watch the video below:
