Green Island man accused of puncturing Black family’s tire in hate crime
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A Green Island man is a facing a felony criminal mischief charge as a hate crime.
Police arrested Matthew Novak. He is now at the Albany County Jail without bail.
Police tell NewsChannel 13 they received a complaint Saturday that someone punctured a car tire, causing it to become flat.
Through an investigation, police found out that the victim and his family — who are Black — had been receiving racial slurs directed towards them by the downstairs tenant before he damaged their tire.