Current:Home > BackNYC officials announce hate crime charge in stabbing death of gay dancer O'Shae Sibley-InfoLens
NYC officials announce hate crime charge in stabbing death of gay dancer O'Shae Sibley
View Date:2024-12-23 16:53:55
A teenager was arrested and charged with murder as a hate crime in the stabbing death of O'Shae Sibley, a gay man who was fatally stabbed in a confrontation at a Brooklyn gas station, authorities said Saturday.
Police said Sibley, a 28-year-old professional choreographer, was stabbed to death July 29 after the confrontation between a group of friends dancing to a Beyoncé song and another group of young men who taunted them with derogatory slurs.
A 17-year-old suspect, who wasn't named, was in custody and was facing a charge of murder in the second degree, charged as a hate crime, and criminal possession of a weapon, the New York Police Department announced at a news conference Saturday.
Sibley's death has drawn national attention and outrage among New York City's LGBTQ community after authorities said they were investigating the case as a possible hate crime. Beyoncé and filmmaker Spike Lee both paid tribute to Sibley online.
Sibley and a group of friends were at a Brooklyn gas station and dancing to music playing from a car when they were approached by another group of young men who told them to stop dancing and "harassed" them, according to Joseph Kenny, assistant chief of the Detective Bureau.
Kenny said investigators interviewed witnesses and looked at video footage to determine that the group, including the suspect, used "derogatory" language, including homophobic and anti-Black slurs against Sibley and his friends.
Kenny said the groups had a verbal confrontation that turned physical and lasted for about four minutes. The suspect and Sibley "come together" in conflict before the suspect retreated while "striking" Sibley once in the chest, Kenny said. The suspect then fled.
Mayor Eric Adams said Sibley's life was lost to something "clearly that was a hate crime."
'REST IN POWER':Beyoncé, Spike Lee pay tribute to O'Shae Sibley, stabbed while dancing
Sibley, from Philadelphia, performed with the dance company Philadanco. He was also part of the New York City house and ballroom LGBTQ culture, according to Lee Soulja Simmons, executive director of the New York City Center for Black Pride.
"We wrestle with this death. We wrestle with hate crimes. We wrestle with people in our community constantly facing discrimination not just because you're Black but because you represent LGBT," Simmons said Saturday. "He did not deserve to die in that way."
One witness of the confrontation, Summy Ullah, said in interviews that the people in conflict with Sibley's group complained that Sibley and his friends' behavior offended them as Muslims. Some leaders of the area's Muslim community condemned the slaying.
“The weight of this loss is felt deeply, not just by the family and friends of O’Shae, but by all of us who value life, peace and justice," Soniya Ali, the executive director of the Muslim Community Center, said Saturday.
Contributing: The Associated Press
veryGood! (9)
Related
- Who will save Florida athletics? Gators need fixing, and it doesn't stop at Billy Napier
- California hiker falls to death in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park
- California judge who's charged with murder allegedly texted court staff: I just shot my wife. I won't be in tomorrow.
- Save 67% On Peter Thomas Roth Retinol and Maximize Your Beauty Sleep
- Garth Brooks wants to move his sexual assault case to federal court. How that could help the singer.
- Simone Biles rocks husband Jonathan Owens' jersey at Green Bay Packers preseason NFL game
- After Lap 1 crash, Scott Dixon spins and wins on IMS road course
- Nevada election-fraud crusader drops US lawsuit under threat of sanctions; presses on in state court
- Colts' Kenny Moore II ridicules team's effort in loss to Bills
- Southern California Marine charged with sex assault of girl, 14, who was found in barracks
Ranking
- Just Eat Takeaway sells Grubhub for $650 million, just 3 years after buying the app for $7.3 billion
- Colts let down QB Anthony Richardson in NFL preseason debut vs. Bills
- Dueling GOP presidential nominating contests in Nevada raise concerns about voter confusion
- Look Back on Eric Dane and Rebecca Gayheart's Relationship History
- RHOP's Candiace Dillard Bassett Gives Birth, Shares First Photos of Baby Boy
- Amidst streaming chaos, Dropout carves out its own niche
- 'I was being a dad': Embattled school leader's heated exchange with reporter caps disastrous week
- 3 unaccounted for after house explosion that destroyed 3 homes, damaged at least 12 others
Recommendation
-
Jason Statham Shares Rare Family Photos of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Their Kids on Vacation
-
Malaysia warns owners of LGBTQ-themed Swatch watches could face jail time
-
J.Crew’s Most Jaw-Dropping Deals Right Now: $218 Sandals for $35, $90 Shorts for $20, and More
-
Feeling lazy? La-Z-Boy's giving away 'The Decliner,' a chair with AI to cancel your plans
-
3 Iraqis tortured at Abu Ghraib win $42M judgement against defense contractor
-
Video shows deadly end to Connecticut police chase as officer shoots man in vehicle
-
Michigan police detained a Black child who was in the ‘wrong place, wrong time,’ department says
-
Former NFL Player Sean Dawkins Dead at 52