Karen Ruiz and Stephen M. Lepore for Dailymail.Com
23:42 01 July 2024, updated 06:52 02 July 2024
- Kaye was attacked and branded with anti-Semitic slurs outside his court appearance
- He was charged with assault for beating a woman at a Pride event
- Pro-Hamas group calls ‘Zionist pigs’ and ‘Jewish dogs’
New York investment banker Jonathan Kaye was attacked and branded with anti-Semitic slurs outside his court appearance after he was charged with assault for assaulting a woman at a Pride event.
Kaye, 52, the now-retired chief executive of Moelis & Company, made headlines in early June after a viral video showed him throwing a wild fist at a revelry at the Brooklyn Pride Parade on June 8.
He was arrested Monday morning after turning himself in to Brooklyn police, where he was charged with second- and third-degree assault.
As he left the court, he and his lawyer were met by attackers, at least one of whom – a man – went after Kaye with keys which they tried to use as a knife.
The group Kaye and his lawyer were dealing with also hurled anti-Semitic slurs at them, with at least one member of the pro-Hamas group calling them “Zionist pigs” and “Jewish dogs”.
The man physically assaulted the lawyer from behind and then tried to chase Kaye with the car keys between his fingers.
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The woman eventually told the attacker to run, which he did. DailyMail.com has reached out to the NYPD for comment.
It comes after sources close to the financier came forward with their side of the story following the controversy last month, claiming the mischief occurred after a group of four female “Queers for Palestine” supporters allegedly began taunting the Jewish financier and throwing liquids at him when that night he was leaving a nearby restaurant.
Unseen footage obtained by DailyMail.com offers a new look at the events leading up to the brawl, showing the moment the two sides clash on a street in Brooklyn’s Park Slope neighborhood before getting into a heated physical confrontation.
CCTV footage taken from a nearby restaurant shows Kaye emerging from the right side of the pavement where a group of cheering people appear to be hanging out on the corner.
The two sides appear to exchange words as Kaye walks past, but he continues walking before looking back at the group after they allegedly start spewing abuse and insults.
As he continues down the sidewalk, he crosses paths with someone who appears to be returning to the same group of friends in the corner, and they also exchange words.
It is not known exactly what was said, but it was apparently provocative enough to cause Kaye to stop, turn, and approach the group.
The confrontation quickly turns chaotic and physical, with Kaye seen being surrounded and then pushed into the street off-screen, attracting the attention of nearby onlookers.
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After the altercation takes place off-camera, she reappears seconds later and continues walking down the sidewalk.
Last month, sources told DailyMail.com that Kaye, who is Jewish, told the group they were “on the wrong side”, prompting the women to unite against him.
DailyMail.com now understands that Kaye turned around and returned to confront the group after hearing anti-Semitic slurs directed at him.
In a statement to DailyMail.com, Kay’s attorney Danya Perry, Perry Law said: “Mr. Kaye, a middle-aged Jewish man with no history of violence or aggression, was terrorized, assaulted and surrounded by a group of unruly anti-Semitic protesters.
“What the previously released video clip does not show is what the other video and other evidence we shared with the DA shows: that these agitators formed a circle around him, doused him with two unknown liquids, pushed him to the ground, and hurled anti-Semitic slurs at him .
“Frightened and injured, Mr Kaye was able to act in self-defence to escape the situation and return safely to his family. We hope that the District Attorney will fully and fairly consider these facts, along with the increase in anti-Semitic acts, protests and attacks that are ravaging our city. We will aggressively fight the injustice and look forward to full vindication for our client.”
As previously reported by DailyMail.com, insiders close to the 52-year-old banker claimed the viral clip did not capture the full confrontation, which they said began when the group began hurling anti-Semitic slurs at Kate, who is Jewish.
Kaye allegedly told the group they were ‘on the wrong side’, prompting the women to gang up on him, the source said.
“You could say he initiated it, but he didn’t,” a source told DailyMail.com.
“He just said ‘you’re on the wrong side’ and then the four of them came at him – throwing liquids at him. He didn’t know what the liquid was. They were shouting abuse at him.
“He fell or hit his chest and I don’t remember. But he ended up on the pavement and four above him.
“He got up and swung at one as he tried to get away and then he ran away.
They also claim the footage shows Kay covered in liquid, with a stain on his back, in the now-viral video.
Images obtained by DailyMail.com show Kaye’s clothing soaked in a red liquid believed to be Gatorade and blood pooling around his ankle after he was pushed to the floor.
Kaye was recorded punching an unnamed woman during a Brooklyn Pride parade on Saturday night, though the NYPD has not launched an official investigation.
Posters bearing his face, home address and cellphone number were plastered in an area near his $4 million, four-bedroom townhouse in upscale Park Slope as neighbors erupted and demanded the father of three’s arrest.
In defense of the banker, who works as a managing director at Moelis & Company, a leading investment bank with offices in Midtown Manhattan, the source said the whole thing was “super anti-Semitic.”
They added: “You can clearly see in the video if you slow it down that he is wet because they threw liquids at him.
“The video clip is edited and doesn’t show the whole thing. He never had a single problem in his entire life, never been arrested or anything.
“It was a super anti-Semitic attack by four individuals who united against one Jewish man. It left him completely traumatized.’
Kaye is currently being investigated by the bank, a spokesperson confirmed his identity and added that they are taking the footage and allegations seriously. An official report has not yet been made to the NYPD, although they are aware of the footage.
In the clip, the woman can be seen being knocked to the floor by the force of the blow as a bystander unsuccessfully rushes to her aid.
Others looking on can be heard calling Kaye a ‘hole’ and telling him to ‘fuck himself’ – earning his attention before abruptly leaving.
Kaye, who lives with his wife, owns several properties on the street that he rents out to neighbors.
One said she was ‘shocked’ when she saw the footage this morning, adding that the father-of-three always seemed ‘normal’, although she spoke normally to his wife.
Another neighbor last night described scenes of chaos in the usually quiet street as the victim’s friends ran up and down shouting that Kaye had assaulted the woman.