Yellow cab driver smashes Jesus Christ statue at Queens church
A yellow cab driver decapitated a statue of Jesus Christ at a Queens church, the Diocese of Brooklyn said Monday.
The vandal parked his car, an SUV, across the street from the Holy Family Catholic Church on the corner of 74th Ave. and 175th St. in Fresh Meadows around 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, the diocese stated.
The man walked directly toward a traditional white marble Holy Family statue depicting the Baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph.
The disgruntled cabbie ripped the head off the Christ statue. The man also tried to damage the likenesses of Mary and Joseph but was unsuccessful.
After the vandalism, he got back in his cab and took off. The NYPD’s Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the incident.
The damage to the statue, which has been with the church for more than 42 years, will cost the parish $20,000 to repair, according to the diocese.
“This is a very unsettling incident, and those who attended Mass yesterday were shocked and horrified to find out this happened,” said the Rev. Sean Suckiel, the parish pastor. “We must pray for an increase in religious tolerance throughout our city.”
Last month, a man bashed statues of Mother Teresa and Pope John XXIII at a Brooklyn church with a hammer. Randy Maldonado-Avila, 30, is also accused of using the hammer to smash the glass front doors of St. Dominic’s Catholic Church on Bay Ridge Parkway near 20th Ave. in Bensonhurst in the June 10 incident.
With the help of a lifelong parishioner, police quickly arrested Maldonado-Avila near the church. He was charged with criminal mischief.
