New York City woman charged with antisemitic hate crimes

Anna Mochalova, 32, has been charged with multiple counts of assault and menacing following two alleged antisemitic attacks in Midtown Manhattan on October 21, 2026. According to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, Mochalova targeted two Jewish men in the Diamond District.

The first victim, a 26-year-old Chabad rabbi identified as Yosef, was allegedly followed and stabbed in the lower back with a syringe near West 47th Street. The second victim, a man wearing a yarmulke, was reportedly approached and struck with a sharp object near West 45th Street. Prosecutors noted that the suspect allegedly spared a third man after he identified himself as Muslim.

Mochalova was released on bail, though her defense attorney has raised questions regarding potential misidentification. The NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating the incidents. The attacks occur amid a reported increase in antisemitic incidents in New York City, which according to NYPD data, account for over 52% of the city's confirmed hate crimes this year.