A New York City celebrity hairstylist was arrested for attacking a prominent rabbi and using vile anti-Semitic slurs outside the posh Chelsea hotel.
Aleksander Janik, known as a personal shopper for stars such as Celine Dion and Rihanna, allegedly violently assaulted Rabbi Chezky Wolff, knocking him to the ground with his huge duffel bag in front of a crowd.
Janik, 52, was charged with assault as a hate crime and was released without bail on Friday after pleading not guilty in Manhattan Criminal Court just hours after his arrest.
Wolff claimed the confrontation allegedly began when Janik’s dog approached the doors of the Chelsea synagogue, which he leads.
Wolff asked Janik to put the dog on a leash, but Janik refused and asked him why he should.
Aleksander Janik, known as a personal shopper for stars such as Celine Dion and Rihanna, allegedly violently assaulted Rabbi Chezky Wolff, knocking him to the ground with his huge duffel bag in front of a crowd.
Video footage of the incident shows Janik hitting the father of six in the head, knocking him to the ground, causing his glasses and kippah to fly.
Janik then allegedly muttered “dirty Jews,” prompting Wolff to start recording him.
Upset that the rabbi was recording him, Janik attacked Wolff in broad daylight in front of many onlookers.
Video footage of the incident shows Janik hitting the father of six in the head, knocking him to the ground and causing his glasses and yarmulke to fly off.
Janik questions the facts and offers a different version of events to The Daily Beast.
He explained that his dog was resting in front of the synagogue to avoid the heat when Wolff approached and demanded that they move.
Janik alleged that Wolff used derogatory language toward him and denied using offensive language.
He then boldly stated that he himself identifies as “half-Jew” and mentioned that his grandmother had a connection to Auschwitz. However, he did not specify whether she was a worker or a prisoner in the concentration camp.
However, he admitted to physically attacking the rabbi.
Janik’s social media accounts are filled with photos of him posing with celebrities like Celine Dion, Rihanna, Brooke Shields and Mayor Eric Adams.
Janik, 52, was charged with assault as a hate crime and was released without bail on Friday after pleading not guilty in Manhattan Criminal Court just hours after being arrested.
‘Yes, I pushed him. “I pushed him with my bag,” he told the New York Post on Tuesday.
‘I protect my dog and myself. A strange man following me with his phone in my face should protect me. “I don’t know him,” Janik said.
‘Support for the Jewish community. “I am a great admirer of all religions,” Janik added.
In response, Wolff’s lawyer Cary London said: ‘We have no answer to the lies of an anti-Semite. Once again, the Jewish people only want peace.’
The bag was apparently filled with hard objects, including books or a laptop, which left a mark on the rabbi’s head, London told the Post.
Janik’s social media accounts are filled with photos of him posing with celebrities like Celine Dion, Rihanna, Brooke Shields and Mayor Eric Adams.
Wolff claimed the confrontation began when Janik’s dog approached the doors of the Chelsea synagogue, which he runs. Janik then muttered “dirty Jews,” prompting Wolff to start recording him.
A witness wrote his story in a daily beast aarticle, which said: “I was having a margarita and eating tapas with a new colleague at an outdoor restaurant on West 23rd Street in Manhattan, when I heard an unfamiliar thud.”
This blow was followed by the sound of a body hitting the ground and the sound of glasses hitting the pavement. “I turned to see a bearded man quickly get up, put his kippah back on, and chase after an attacker who was walking a golden retriever,” Ben Sherwood, editor and CEO of the Daily Beast, who witnessed the attack, wrote on Saturday. .
“Immediately, the restaurant patrons jumped to their feet… There was a real sense of outrage on the terrace,” he wrote. “This is New York City,” the British woman said, “and there is anti-Semitism all around us.”
