A 48-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of a hate crime after a passenger was subjected to antisemitic abuse on a bus in north-east London.
The 36-year-old victim was reading a prayer book while travelling on the 254 bus towards Aldgate on 6 December when the suspect boarded near Stamford Hill in Hackney. The suspect made antisemitic comments to the victim and also verbally abused a group of teenage girls on the bus.
When the victim intervened, he was punched in the arm. Police were called but the suspect could not be found at the scene. After reviewing CCTV footage, officers identified and arrested the man on Friday on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence.
Detective Superintendent Adam Ghaboos of the Metropolitan Police said: 'We have a large Jewish community in Hackney who have the right to live peacefully without being victimised because of their faith. My officers will thoroughly investigate all hate crimes that are reported to us.'
The incident follows another attack in Stamford Hill on 29 November, in which a rabbi was thrown to the ground by two men shouting 'kill the Jews'.
