Sikh man dead following brutal road rage assault

by Kristen Guglielmo Associate Editor

A 66-year-old man died last Friday after a vehicle collision led to a physical altercation in Richmond Hill, police said.

On Oct. 19 at approximately 12:02 p.m., officers responded to a crash in front of 87-34 Van Wyck Expwy., police said. Upon further investigation, police said Gilbert Augustin, 30, was involved in a physical altercation with Jasmer Singh, 66, after the crash.

EMS responded to the location and transported Singh to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, authorities said, where he succumbed to his injuries the following day.

Augustin was charged with manslaughter, assault, aggravated unlicensed operator and leaving the scene of an accident, according to police.

In an interview with CBS New York, Singh’s family called for hate crime charges against Augustin.

“There was no reason for someone to go in that intensity,” his son told CBS. “My father was targeted and it is a possible hate crime.”

Mayor Eric Adams took to X, formerly Twitter, to address the incident, the second violent instance involving a Sikh man in Richmond Hill within seven days, writing, “... I want our Sikh community to know you have more than our condolences. You have our sacred vow that we reject the hatred that took this innocent life and we will protect you.”

Adams attached a screenshot of photos of Singh to his state- ment, posted by the account @ webelonghereny on Instagram.

Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-Woodhaven) also released a statement on the matter. “... In our community, Sikhs, Christians, Hindus, Muslims and Jews live together in harmony, often on the same block. When a crime occurs against any of us, it is a crime against all of us, and we come together in solidarity.” Q

Jasmer Singh, 66, died last Friday after being assaulted following a car accident.

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