A man launched an unhinged attack on a line of carriage horses in Central Park, punching and kicking the defenseless animals while threate...
A man launched an unhinged attack on a line of carriage horses in Central Park, punching and kicking the defenseless animals while threatening to stab bystanders in the latest New York City violent attack, which many are blaming on mayor Bill de Blasio.
The attack took place on Monday just before noon inside Central Park near West 59th Street and Sixth Avenue.
Drivers with the Hansom cab carriage company say they saw the suspect talking to himself and washing his shirt in the horses' drinking water before he approached an 11-year-old Gypsy/Morgan cross named 'Dennis.'
He began cursing at the animal before suddenly slugging the gentle creature in the face, said the drivers.
'With his wet shirt wrapped around his hand, he punched Dennis in the face!' driver Nurettin Kirbiyik, 47, told Fox News. 'I look away, I was scared, I didn't want to look at him.'
The unnamed attacker then targeted a second horse, launching a kick at it, before aiming a punch at a third horse, a 16-year-old dark brown mare named 'Mary.'
Thankfully, Mary's driver Henry Kaya was able to intervene and moved his horse out the way.
Henry Kaya captured an unidentified man launch a punch towards an unsuspecting horse in Central Park
Henry Kaya confronted the unidentified man (pictured) who he claims punched his horse on Monday
Hansom cab driver Henry Kaya, 28, (pictured) with his 16-year-old dark brown mare named 'Mary'
'He raised his hand to punch my horse but I pulled my horse back so he could barely touch my horse,' Kaya told the New York Post. Before storming off the man threatened to punch Kaya and told the driver 'I have a knife,' Kaya told the Post.
A still from Kaya's cell phone footage captured the man launching his fist at a defenseless horse.
At one point the man put on a safety vest he picked up from the ground and claimed, 'He was stabbing me in the back, your friend,' while gesturing with his arm, the Post reported.
Kaya and another driver, Mario Angelucci, tracked the man down and confronted him from a distance.
'Why are you hitting my horse? It's a poor animal!' Kaya yelled at the man.
Kaya says he told passersby to call the police as the man walked away.
He called 911 and showed his video to the cops who told him they recognized the man as someone who hangs out in Times Square, he said.
But the NYPD reportedly marked the case as unfounded because of a lack of evidence, the Post reported.
Angelucci told Fox News he blamed the situation on mayor Bill de Blasio.
'De Blasio really turned this place into a mess,' he said. 'He was supposed to clean this up!'
The horse attack comes as violent crime continues to spike in the Big Apple, jumping by a quarter over the past year, according to police data. Shootings in New York City have surged by 43 percent in the past year, while murders are up 12 percent.
Most recently a woman was slashed in the chest and hand after ignoring a mans catcalls in Times Square last Friday.
That incident came a week after a U.S. Marine was hit by a stray bullet after two CD vendors got into a fight and one opened fire.
In response to the incidents, mayor Bill de Blasio said he is increasing police presence in the area, deploying 'dozens' more police officers, some of whom will be in plain clothes, to engage with street vendors.
Henry Kaya, 28, takes people on a carriage ride in Central Park after a man attempted to attack his horse on Monday
28-year-old hansom cab driver Henry Kaya, captured video of the attacker who at one point threatened to punch him and told him he had a knife
But critics still fault the mayor for the ever-rising tide of crime, citing De blasio's anti-police sentiment.
'It's a direct result of far-left policy being put into action,' the city's sole Republican in Congress told DailyMail.com in an exclusive interview.
'The bail reform law has been a disaster,' said Rep Nicole Malliotosis. 'People with extensive criminal histories are arrested for major crimes and then released and are back out on the streets.'
And Ed Mullins, president of the NYPD's Sergeant Benevolent Association added: 'Nobody is talking about why this is happening. You have to address the real problems, enforce laws, have District Attorneys prosecute crimes and have bail that actually works.
'The cops aren't allowed to do anything,' added Mullins. 'This administration doesn't want confrontation. They're afraid of any backlash, any protests.
This chart shows murder and felony assault rates in New York City up 12.2 per cent and 6.9 per cent, respectively, compared to the same time last year
Major crimes in New York City has seen a rise over the last year
'The police department is trying to appease the people who are violating the law, but we're learning that appeasement doesn't work.'
Latest official figures show murders citywide are up 12 percent from 189 at this time last year to 212 so far in 2021.
Rapes are up from 650 to 684 in the year to June 27. Felony assaults are up from 9,399 to 10,045.
The most dramatic crease is in gun violence, with incidents up 43 percent from 503 to 718 and those injured or killed up 36 percent from 606 to 826.
In just one week - from Wednesday, June 23 through Tuesday, June 29 - all five boroughs of New York City were plagued by chilling murders, drive-by shootings, nightly wildings in Washington Square Park and smaller random acts of violence.
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