A Brooklyn woman charged with hate crimes over alleged syringe attacks on two men in Midtown Manhattan was held on $50,000 bail on Sunday, a day after police arrested her, according to prosecutors and court reporting.
Prosecutors allege Anna Mochalova, 32, of Brighton Beach targeted two men in the Diamond District area on Wednesday because she believed them to be Jewish. One victim was a 26-year-old rabbi; the second man was wearing a yarmulke, prosecutors said. According to the criminal complaint, a third man was approached and left alone after he said he was Muslim.
Mochalova faces charges including assault and menacing as hate crimes, aggravated harassment and weapon possession, police and prosecutors said. The NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating. All charges are allegations, and she is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Her Legal Aid lawyer, Lila Carpenter, told the court investigators may have misidentified the attacker, saying her client has no previous arrests and holds a steady job. Judge Linda Capitti set bail at $50,000 cash or a $150,000 bond, and the case is due back in court on October 29, according to court reporting.