An off-duty New York City police officer was beaten with a stick and punched by at least three attackers in the Bronx on Monday, amid a growing crime wave sweeping the nation.
Video released by the NYPD shows the 33-year-old off-duty officer talking to two men on a street corner at about 11.40am Monday, apparently in a heated argument.
One of the men, wearing a blue tie-dyed shirt, then starts punching the victim, as the other, who is shirtless, grabs him.
Surveillance video released by the NYPD showed an off-duty police officer being beaten with a stick and punched by at least three attackers in the Bronx on Monday
Two men are seen pushing and grabbing the victim as another shirtless man watches
A third suspect then appears on the footage and hits the off-duty officer with a blue stick
They are later seen pushing and grabbing the victim, when a third assailant appears on camera and hits the victim with a blue stick.
Another shirtless man watched the attack, but did not appear to get involved.
As the officer tries to walk away from the scene, the three assailants are seen following him.
Witnesses said the officer got into a verbal dispute with the men prior to the physical altercation. They said they were unaware that the victim was a police officer, as he was wearing plain clothes.
The officer suffered pain to his head, back and knees, and was taken to a local hospital, where he is said to be conscious and alert, ABC 7 reports.
The NYPD is now looking for the suspects involved, telling ABC 7 there were at least six members of the group that attacked the victim, and they fled on foot.
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea told New York 1 News on Tuesday that the attack 'is very much under investigation by the detective squad of the 41st precinct.'
He added that he is 'having the Internal Affairs Bureau look into the entire incident to make sure there was nothing that shouldn't be happening there with our officer,' according to the Post.
Anyone with information is asked to call the police department's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1 (800) 577 - TIPS. All calls will remain confidential.
The New York Police Department is now searching for these suspects and is asking anyone with information to call the department's Crime Stoppers Hotline
The assault comes amid a rise in crime throughout the city.
In May, the New York Police Department reported, crime rates increased 22 percent over
