UPDATE: Second man arrested in New York hate assault

A second man was arrested Tuesday evening in the anti-gay beating of a man in Queens, New York, police said.

Charges are pending against Daniel Rodriguez, 21, who was taken into custody in Norfolk, Virginia.

The other suspect, Daniel Aleman, 26, was arrested on Sunday and charged with assault and aggravated assault as a hate crime.

Police said the two men shouted anti-gay remarks and viciously beat Jack Price, 49, as he left a 24-hour deli on College Point Boulevard in Queens early Friday.

No further details were available about the attack or Price’s current condition.

Initially, Price was being treated at New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens, where a spokeswoman said he was in fair condition, with stable vital signs.
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A man brutally beaten in New York City was targeted because he is openly gay, the New York Police Department said Monday.

Two men shouting “anti-gay remarks” viciously beat Jack Price, 49, as he left a 24-hour deli on College Point Boulevard in Queens early Friday morning, police said. No further details where available about the attack.

Price is being treated at New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens, where “he is in fair condition and his vital signs are stable,“ said hospital spokeswoman Camela Morrissey.

Police arrested Daniel Aleman, 26, and charged him with assault and aggravated assault as a hate crime.

“When someone is attacked for being who they are, and for being proud of who they are, there is no other explanation for that attack than hatred and bigotry,“ said New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the first openly gay speaker of the city council.

“I know the Queens community is outraged that hate has tainted their streets, and I know they will join with us in helping the local authorities find the second suspect.“

The police department’s Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating the incident.

No court date has been set for Aleman.