NJ woman charged with hate crime for assaulting muslim teens

By Edward Era Barbacena

A 59-year-old Clifton woman was arrested Wednesday and charged with bias crimes after she allegedly screamed anti-Muslim slurs at two teenagers at a nail salon and struck one in the head in an unprovoked attack.

Nancy B. Jones was charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, bias intimidation and harassment, as well as simple assault, according to a statement from the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office.

The alleged incident took place on April 30 when two sisters, ages 13 and 15, were waiting to get their nails done at New Natural Nails on Lakeview Avenue. Clifton police responded to a report of an assault at around 2 p.m.

Upon arriving, the girls told officers, Jones "approached them in a harassing and tumultuous manner and told them to go back to their country," according to the statement.

"During the incident, the actor struck the 13-year-old victim in the head," authorities said

The alleged incident took place on April 30 when two sisters, ages 13 and 15, were waiting to get their nails done at New Natural Nails on Lakeview Avenue. Clifton police responded to a report of an assault at around 2 p.m.

Upon arriving, the girls told officers, Jones "approached them in a harassing and tumultuous manner and told them to go back to their country," according to the statement.

"During the incident, the actor struck the 13-year-old victim in the head," authorities said

Jones also yelled at another person in the salon who was wearing a hijab, assuming it was their mother, but they did not know each other, Fadwa said.

The teens' mother said she had called on her way to pick them up and heard that her daughter was crying on the phone. When she arrived at the salon, she got a description from customers in the nail salon and stopped the woman at her car. The woman shouted and cursed at her and drove away, she said.

Fadwa said she took a picture of the vehicle and license plate. Police interviewed the teens and witnesses and issued an arrest warrant for Jones, who turned herself in on Wednesday.

Since the incident, the girls have been nervous about going out and their mother said she reduced her working hours to be home with them more often.

"They're upset and a little scared and I'm scared also," she said.

Jones was scheduled to appear in court on Thursday. Charges were referred to a Passaic County grand jury, the Prosecutor's Office said.

In a statement, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Muslim civil rights organization, called the incident deeply troubling.

"Physically and verbally attacking two young girls to the point of tears is appalling," said Selaedin Maksut, executive director of the New Jersey chapter. "We welcome the ongoing police investigation by Clifton officers and hope the matter is taken seriously and justice is done."

CAIR reported 308 anti-Muslim hate and bias incidents across the U.S. last year, which included reports of forcible removal of hijabs, harassment, vandalism and physical assault. Another 177 bias incidents took place at schools, the organization reported.