NEW YORK CITY — A man sleeping on a Harlem street was hit with fireworks and suffered burns, police said Monday after a video of the incident circulated on social media.
Video shows someone lighting and throwing a firework at the man, who appears to be homeless. The firework explodes as it hits the man.
Another person can be seen in the video filming the incident.
An NYPD spokesperson said the department received a call at around 4 a.m. Monday near 62 Lenox Ave. (Malcolm X Boulevard) in Harlem.
Officers found the man, 66, suffering from minor burns. He was taken to a hospital and was said to be stable.
Detectives have since become aware of the social media video and are using it to help identify the suspect.
Fireworks thrown at a sleeping homeless man. pic.twitter.com/RF9RyVZsY3
— Yossi Gestetner (@YossiGestetner) June 22, 2020
No arrests have been made.
New York City — and other parts of the state — are experiencing a surge in firework activity and complaints. There were 1,737 calls to the city about fireworks use in the first half of June, which is more than 80 times the amount in the same period last year. There were just 21 complaints between June 1 and June 15 last year.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to announce a crackdown on illegal firework suppliers on Tuesday.
A group of New Yorkers loudly protested ongoing fireworks issues outside the mayor's Upper East Side mansion late Monday night. Watch more below.
This story was originally published by Corey Crockett on WPIX in New York City.
