NYC Doormen Fired For Not Helping Asian Woman In Brutal Attack

A doorman and a concierge who were caught on camera failing to help an elderly Asian woman while she was brutally assaulted last week in front of a Manhattan apartment building have been fired from their jobs at the building, its management company said Tuesday.

The woman was kicked and beaten while her attacker spewed anti-Asian insults at her. The Brodsky Organization, which manages the luxury building, said in a statement that it had completed an internal investigation of the incident and concluded the response of the two employees was lacking.

Security camera footage of the March 29 hate crime showed the men standing idly by while 65-year-old Vilma Kari was assaulted in front of the Midtown building. The men even closed the door after the perpetrator, 38-year-old Brandon Elliot, departed the scene of the crime. Elliot, who was on parole for murdering his mother in 2002, was arrested two days later.

"While the full lobby video shows that once the assailant had departed, the doormen emerged to assist the victim and flag down an NYPD vehicle, it is clear that required emergency and safety protocols were not followed," the Brodsky Organization said. "For this reason, their employment has been terminated, effective immediately."

The company said it is "committed to implementing a comprehensive retraining of building services staff companywide regarding proper emergency response protocols as well as anti-bias awareness and upstander-bystander interventions."

The two men, both members of the SEIU Local 32BJ union, were suspended after the incident, the New York Daily News reported. The union said it played no role in the Brodsky Organization's investigation, according to a statement.

"We were recently notified that the employer, the Brodsky corporation, terminated both the doorman and concierge on duty during the heinous attack," union president Kyle Bragg said.

"Contrary to published reports, the Union did not play any role whatsoever in this decision," he explained.

A GoFundMe page was set up for Kari, a Filipino immigrant, in the wake of the attack. It had raised $256,360 out of its $20,000 goal as of late Tuesday night. She suffered a fracture to her pelvis and several contusions to the head during the vicious attack.

Elizabeth Kari, Vilma Kari's daughter and the organizer of the page, said her mother was "humbled by the outpouring of messages and support" they have received.