NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — A man convicted in a brutal assault at a Dallas BBQ restaurant in Manhattan has been sentenced.
Bayna-Lekheim El-Amin, 42, was convicted of first-degree attempted assault and second-degree assault in the attack – in which he was caught on video smashing a chair over two men’s heads, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.
The attack happened around 11 p.m. Tuesday, May 5, 2015, at the Chelsea BBQ at 261 Eighth Ave., at 23rd Street, in Chelsea – during what was reported to be a Cinco de Mayo celebration.
A man hits two other men over the head with a chair at Dallas BBQ on May 5, 2015. (credit: Isaam Sharef)
Witness Isaam Sharef caught the attack on video and posted it to YouTube and Instagram. The video, which has since been made private, shows Jonathan Snipes being flung to the floor and kicked as others screamed, “Stop!”
Photos later published by DNAInfo showed Snipes with cuts on his head and near his ear.
Jonathan Snipes, 32, said a man attacked him inside a Dallas BBQ on West 23rd Street after calling him an anti-gay epithet. (Credit: Ben Fractenberg/DNAInfo; used by permission)
El-Amin was sentenced to up to nine years in prison in Manhattan Supreme Court on Thursday.
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance called the attack “horrific” and said there was no justification for the brutal incident. Vance then commended the victims for their courage.
El-Amin has 15 prior arrests in multiple states, including New York and New Jersey, Gainer reported last year. Police said those arrests were mostly for drug possession and assault.
