No Big Apple Big Hug Mug For You
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| Oddly Familiar |
(New York Times Online) For
years, Jermaine Himmelstein, 24, has held a sign offering “Free Hugs”
in public places like Times Square and Washington Square Park, a
seemingly kind offer that could brighten the days of tourists and
lunch-breakers.
For
years, it hasn’t worked like that. The sign is a lie; Mr. Himmelstein
has frequently accosted people who don’t tip him, in some cases
assaulting them. Far from spreading joy, he was described in a 2013 profile in The New York Times as “a creepy legend.”
On
Thursday, he was arrested and charged with robbery after punching a
22-year-old Canadian tourist, a woman, in the face at 46th Street and
Broadway in Times Square, sending her to a hospital with severe swelling
to her face... She had taken a photo with Mr.
Himmelstein and refused his demands to pay him, the police said.
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