An off-duty NYPD sergeant was hospitalized early Sunday morning following a severe beating in Ozone Park. Sources say the officer, who the Post identifies as Sergeant Mohammed Deen, was jumped outside St. John’s Express restaurant on Liberty Avenue after getting into an argument with another man at a club. “The big tall guy with the vest rushed the other guy as he was walking to his car,” witness Bangal Deonarine tells the Daily News. “He was punching him. Slamming his head against the floor.” Ken Lee, who owns a shop nearby, said the man continued punching the victim as he lay motionless in the street. A woman believed to be with the victim was screaming, “Stop, you’re already killing him,” according to Lee.
The attacker tried to flee before police arrived on the scene, but it appears he had little chance of getting away with the crime. ABC New York reports the man was followed by witnesses, and later a video of the beating surfaced on Facebook. Hayden Holder, 29, of Jamaica, was arrested Sunday evening and charged with felony assault. Sources tell the Post he confessed, but said he didn’t know the victim was a cop. The officer remains hospitalized in critical but stable condition.
