Live Fireworks Thrown at Homes, Cars in Possible Rockland Hate Crime
Police are actively looking for four men who threw fireworks at cars and homes in the Hudson Valley in what appears to be a hate crime.
Clarkstown Police is investigating the acts of criminal mischief. The first occurred in the area of Tarry Hill Drive and Phillips Hill Road in New City Tuesday around 10:45 p.m.
A woman who lives on Tarry Hill Drive told police she heard a loud boom coming from outside her home. When she looked outside her window she noticed four white males running from her home.
The suspects are possibly teenagers, police say. One was wearing a pink shirt. While running from the home on Tarry Hill Drive, the homeowner noticed one man toss a firework toward the front of her residence.
The firework exploded next to a tree in front of the home causing the tree to catch on fire. Then suspects then fled west on Phillips Hill Road. New City Fire Department responded to scene and extinguished fire.
While conducting the investigation, authorities were approached by another resident of the home who told them of a similar incident that happened in the neighborhood.
During a gathering on Phillips Hill Road attendees heard a loud boom from the driveway area. When the group looked outside they noticed that a firework had been thrown in between three cars.
Luckily, the cars were not damaged and no one was injured.
No one at the party spotted the suspects. A fragment and partial label of a firework were recovered from the scene and secured as evidence for further processing.
Because both of the New City residence’s are home to rabbis, police think the acts could have been a hate crime.
Clarkstown Supervisor George Hoehmann said yesterday that he is concerned because there was another local incident involving swastikas and hate graffiti within the last month.
Police are interviewing neighbors and residents and hoping to find any video surveillance. Patrol officers are also canvassing the neighborhood to inquire as to any other eyewitnesses to the event. Police plan to patrol the area with increased visibility in the near future.
Anyone with information should call the Clarkstown Police Department Detective Bureau at 845-639-5840.