DA Dismisses Charges In Assault Of Korean American Woman

WHITE PLAINS, NY — Charges against a homeless man who was accused in March of assaulting a Korean American woman in White Plains are being dropped.

In a statement released Tuesday, Westchester County District Attorney said her office has determined that "available evidence beyond the inadmissible identification is not sufficient to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the suspect originally arrested committed the assault as charged."

She said all charges against the man were dismissed, "as justice requires."

In early March, Nancy Toh, 83, was collecting bottles and cans for money outside of The Westchester mall around 7:30 p.m. A man came up to her, spit in her face and punched her in the nose.

Toh called the police the next day, and a homeless man was taken into custody. He was charged with assault.

The man had been in custody since March 11, and his defense counsel said they were applying for his release on his own recognizance. Rocah agreed to the application for release.

She said her office was committed to prosecuting anyone who commits hate crimes to the fullest extent of the law.

Rocah said they were also firmly committed to maintaining the integrity of all of our arrests and prosecutions.

The incident remains under investigation by the Westchester DA's Office. Anyone who has information about this crime is encouraged to call the DA's Office hotline at 914-995-TIPS and choose the option for hate crimes, in any of the available languages.