Brooklyn Man Elias Rosner Survives Antisemitic Stabbing After Leaving Crown Heights Synagogue; NYPD Hunt Suspect [VIDEO]

A Brooklyn man survived a targeted antisemitic stabbing Tuesday afternoon after leaving a Crown Heights synagogue, prompting a large police response as the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force searches for the suspect.

Elias Rosner, 35, an Orthodox Jewish man, said he had just exited his synagogue near Kingston Avenue and Lincoln Place around 4 p.m. with several fellow congregants when an unknown individual approached the group and began shouting antisemitic slurs División.

“We were just crossing the street when he started ranting at all of us,” Rosner told the New York Daily News. “He said if the Holocaust was successful we wouldn’t be here today and how he wanted to kill a Jew today.”

According to Rosner, the suspect became fixated on him after he made eye contact. Moments later, during a second confrontation, the man pulled out a knife and stabbed Rosner in the chest, just above his heart.

Surveillance video shared on social media shows Rosner wearing a tan shirt and lime green hat as he struggles with the attacker, who initially walks away before returning and carrying out the stabbing. Rosner briefly follows the suspect before collapsing.

“Luckily, a combination of technique and blade shape made the knife glance off,” Rosner said, adding that the injury narrowly missed his heart.

The suspect fled on foot and was last seen heading toward Sterling Place and Albany Avenue, police said.

Rosner was transported to Kings County Hospital, where he was treated for a minor chest wound and later released. He was interviewed by detectives later that night and was recovering at home Wednesday.

In response to the attack, the NYPD deployed dozens of additional officers to Crown Heights and surrounding neighborhoods. Police released surveillance images of the suspect, described as a man wearing cornrows and a black-and-white jacket with the word “Genuine” on the back.

The NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force is leading the investigation. Authorities said the suspect may be mentally disturbed, though Rosner rejected that as justification.

“There are plenty of people with mental health problems who aren’t bigoted and aren’t violent,” he said. “That shouldn’t be an excuse.”

The attack occurred just before the third night of Chanukah, amid heightened security concerns for Jewish communities worldwide. While NYPD officials note that antisemitic incidents in New York City are down approximately 9% this year, such cases still account for more than half of all bias crimes investigated by the department.

Anyone with information about the suspect is urged to contact Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All tips are confidential.