New York survivor of AAPI hate crime finally sees justice

by Erika DuBose December 2, 2022Updated January 12, 2023

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A survivor of a violent hate crime is finally getting justice. A 67-year-old New York woman, who was punched more than 100 times after being called a slur, saw her attacker sentenced to over 17 years in prison.

The woman, name witheld, is Filipino. The man who attacked her, Tammel Esco, said “Asian b*tch,” as she walked by him in Yonkers, New York.

Esco then punched the woman more than 100 times and stomped on her body. He was also recorded spitting on her as she lay in the vestibule of her New York apartment complex.

The sentence will also see Esco serve five years of post-release supervision by the New York justice department. Prosecutors called the attack “one of the most violent and shocking hate crimes that we’ve seen.”

The violent hate crime, captured on video in New York, occurred in March 2022. Esco went to jail without bail immediately following his arrest.

The attack caused the woman to suffer a brain bleed, and multiple fractures. She also lost her residency in her New York apartment complex.

Perpetrator of AAPI hate crime pleads guilty

After his arrest, Esco pled guilty to assault in the first degree as a hate crime. In a statement, prosecutors said: This is a case that has traumatized not only the victim and her family, but also her neighbors, the New York community, and the broader Asian American and Pacific Islander community.”

This is not the first time a member of the Asian American Pacific Islander community has been the target of a hate crime. Since the start of the Covid19 pandemic, the AAPI community has seen a rise in violence.

The woman has spoken out clearly against her attacker. “A complete stranger heartlessly spit, beat and kicked me over 100 times just because of my heritage … My only hope is that God and the criminal justice system will see fit to make sure this never happens to any other innocent family again.”