A Forest Hills man accused of slugging a Bukharian rabbi on Holocaust Remembrance Day is now wanted on a bench warrant after skipping his latest court date, reigniting anger and anxiety in the neighborhood over why he was on supervised release in the first place.
Eric Zafra Grosso, 32, was first arrested in late January and is facing hate-crime and assault charges for allegedly punching a member of the Bukharian Jewish community. His no-show this week has brought the case roaring back into public view and renewed scrutiny of the court’s earlier decision that allowed him to walk out under supervision instead of posting bail.
What prosecutors say
According to the Queens District Attorney’s Office, Grosso approached Rabbi David Shushan on Jan. 27, spewed antisemitic slurs and then "punched the victim in the face and chest." Prosecutors charged him with assault in the third degree, assault in the third degree as a hate crime and aggravated harassment, and scheduled him to return to court on March 16. The initial arraignment and charging details were reported in Queens man charged.
How the arrest unfolded
Shomrim, the local volunteer safety patrol, teamed up with officers from the NYPD’s 112th Precinct and quickly tracked Grosso to the Forest Hills-71st Avenue subway station shortly after the attack, according to reporting that cited the victim and police. Rabbi Shushan told reporters he had managed to snap a photo of his attacker during the struggle, a key detail that helped lead to the swift arrest. That account was reported by the New York Daily News.
Court mix-up and the bench warrant
Late Wednesday, the New York Post reported that Grosso failed to appear for his March court date and that a judge responded by issuing a bench warrant for his arrest. At the original arraignment, prosecutors had pushed for $40,000 bail, but the judge opted for supervised release instead, a move that drew criticism from some local voices at the time, according to coverage by WABC.
As of publication, neither updated court filings nor a fresh statement from prosecutors confirming the warrant had appeared on official channels.
Community reaction
Local elected officials and Jewish community leaders denounced the alleged hate attack when it first happened and renewed their calls for accountability after word spread that Grosso had missed his court date. State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani said he was "horrified" by the assault and offered the city’s support to the rabbi, while Queens representatives jointly condemned what they described as a targeted act of hate. Those statements were reported by the Queens Daily Eagle and in the District Attorney’s press release.
Legal stakes
If convicted on the top count of third-degree assault as a hate crime, Grosso faces a potential sentence of 1 1/3 to 4 years in prison, according to charging documents and local reporting. In its statement, the Queens District Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting the case through its Hate Crimes Bureau, said, "The defendant is charged with felony hate crime charges for allegedly attacking a man wearing a yarmulke and spewing antisemitic slurs at the victim." Queens District Attorney’s Office.
What's next
The bench warrant means the case will likely pick up again the moment law enforcement manages to locate Grosso, and the same judge could decide to hold him in custody pending future hearings. The New York Post first reported the warrant. Prosecutors and court clerks had not posted any confirming update on their public sites as of this writing. This story will be updated if the District Attorney’s Office or the court system files new paperwork or if police announce an arrest.
