STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A Staten Island defendant convicted in the beating of a Jewish man two years ago in Times Square was at the center of a chaotic hearing Tuesday in Manhattan state Supreme Court.
Mahmoud Musa, 23, of Targee Street in Stapleton, was sentenced by Justice Felicia Mennin to a seven-year prison sentence followed by five years of post release supervision for his role in the attack, while taking into consideration a subsequent arrest.
The victim, Joseph Borgen, sat with more than 50 individuals wearing blue “Justice for Joey” hats, while supporters of Musa shouted accusations of the judge being “racist,” the New York Post reported.
On his way out of the courtroom, Musa reportedly shouted “free Palestine,” fueling outbursts from the gallery.
The charges stemmed from violence that played out May 20, 2021, during a clash between Israel and Palestinian supporters. Borgen at the time was wearing a yarmulke as he was jumped in a chaotic ordeal captured on video.
A spokeswoman for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said Wednesday that prosecutors had requested a stiff sentence, after the defendant was arrested a second time while held at Rikers Island for allegedly touching the breast of a correction officer.
Musa’s attorney, Lance Lazzaro, said Wednesday his client was the product of a generational trap of hatred and violence on both sides of the Israel-Palestinian dispute.
“He has a ton of family in Gaza and when you live under abject poverty almost like living in a prison, so they hear about this and about having very little rights, and they end up forming a hatred that’s misguided. There’s the perception Palestinians never have a fair shake and are treated like second class people. They were there to support the Palestinian people.”
That’s not to say, said Lazzaro, that he condoned the “horrendous” act of violence. “You feel horrible for the victim, he didn’t deserve it,” said Lazzaro.
But the sentences handed out…
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