CAIR-NY Offers Reward for Info on Suspect Who Threatened Women Perceived to Be Muslim
(NEW YORK, NY, 7/27/26) - The New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY) today announced a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a suspect who allegedly threatened two young women perceived to be Muslim while brandishing a box cutter aboard a bus in Queens.
According to the NYPD, the incident occurred on July 16 at approximately 6 p.m. near Northern Boulevard and 51st Street in Woodside. Police say the suspect directed anti-Muslim remarks at the two women, ages 19 and 21, threatened them with violence while displaying a box cutter, and then fled the bus. The NYPD Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the incident as a suspected bias crime.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the NYPD Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or submit a tip online through the NYPD.
In a statement, CAIR-NY Executive Director Afaf Nasher said:
“No one should have to fear for their safety because of their faith or because they are perceived to be Muslim. Threatening passengers with a weapon while spewing anti-Muslim hate is an attack not only on the victims, but on the values of safety and religious freedom that all New Yorkers deserve. We urge anyone with information to come forward so this individual can be held accountable.”
She noted that CAIR-NY recently welcomed charges against a suspect accused of carrying out a series of allegedly anti-Muslim firebombing attacks, joined a call for members of the public to provide any information that may assist law enforcement in identifying the individual responsible for a series of anti-Islamic graffiti incidents in Brooklyn and called for a hate crime investigation into a violent threat targeting the Sunnyside Muslim Center.
CAIR-NY also recently condemned vandalism targeting two Queens synagogues.
Washington, D.C. based CAIR’s latest civil rights report documented 8,683 anti-Muslim bias complaints in 2025 – the highest number ever recorded by the organization since it began publishing civil rights reports in 1996.CAIR-NY’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR-NY es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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CONTACT:
Afaf Nasher, Esq. CAIR-NY Executive Director, ANasher@cair.com
CAIR-NY Communications Team, comms@ny.cair.com