Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said on Monday that a woman was charged with pepper spraying a 45-year-old Uber driver in July as part of an anti-Muslim attack on the Upper East Side.
The 23-year-old Jennifer Guilbeault is being charged with aggravated harassment and assault as a hate crime.
Court records show that on July 31, around 12:15 a.m., the Uber driver was finishing a ride for Guilbeault and someone else who was sitting in the back of his car.
Police say that the driver started praying in Arabic as he came up to a red light near East 65th Street and Lexington Avenue on the Upper East Side.
Then, Guilbeault is said to have jumped out of the back seat with a can of pepper spray and sprayed the driver in the face, making it burn, turn red, and hurt.
After a few minutes, the driver called 911, and Guilbeault was caught right there.
“As claimed, Jennifer Guilbeault attacked a Muslim Uber driver for no reason while he was doing his job,” Bragg said. “The victim is an honest New Yorker who should not have to deal with this kind of hate because of who he is.”
Anyone can live or work in Manhattan, and our Hate Crimes Unit will continue to deal with attacks based on bias by thoroughly investigating and prosecuting cases, reaching out to the community, and helping victims.
