Footage Shows Man Throwing Brick at NYC Gay Bar Window, Attack Spurs Hate Crime Investigation

A gay bar in New York City has been repeatedly targeted with vandalism in recent days, with the latest attack spurring a hate crime investigation from local police.

Speaking with WNBC, David DeParolesa—the owner of VERS in Hell’s Kitchen—noted that these attacks show a pattern.

“Last night and several other nights in the past week, a man has come by with a brick and smashed our window during service when people are here,” DeParolesa told the outlet, adding that a suspect was “finally caught on video” in connection with the most recent incident.

All told, a brick has been thrown into the front window of the establishment on at least four different occasions, starting with an incident on Oct. 20 and leading up to the most recent incident this weekend. In a separate interview on Sunday, DeParolesa told Gothamist that police had initially been “dismissive” and “nonchalant” in their response to these attacks.

Complex has reached out to VERS and the NYPD for comment. This story may be updated. In a tweet on Tuesday, the NYPD shared additional footage of the suspect and said that the individual was wanted in connection with a “criminal mischief hate crime pattern” investigation.

Coverage of the targeting of the NYC bar comes amid continued developments surrounding an attack at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs in which a suspect killed five people. The suspect, Anderson Lee Aldrich, is currently in custody and facing potential hate crime charges.