Man arrested for savage 'hate-crime' beating of young gay man tells police he is gay, too

By Daily Mail Reporter
Updated: 18:11 EST, 2 April 2011

A man has been arrested in connection with the vicious hate crime which shocked New York last weekend when a young gay man was savagely beaten outside McDonalds.

But the 'twist in the tale' in connection to the incident is that the man who was arrested claims it was not a hate crime - because he is also gay.

Homeless Anthony Bray, 21, has been charged with misdemeanour assault for Sunday's 4.30am attack on Damian Furtch, 26, outside the fast food joint on West 3rd Street near Sixth Avenue, according to police.

Damien Furtch

The man who allegedly brutally beat up Damian Furtch in an apparent hate attack that began inside a McDonald's in the West Village, Manhattan, has told police that he is gay and the fight was out of respect

Last week, as Mr Furtch's horrific injuries were published in the media, he claimed that two men started shouting anti-gay slurs at him in the restaurant before the attack.

Bray, whose criminal record includes arrests for marijuana, graffiti and robbery, said that Mr Furtch had 'disrespected him' in the restaurant.

At this time, no hate crimes charges have been leveled against Bray.

According to the New York Post, the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force will continue to look into Mr Furtch’s allegations and see if any additional charges are warranted.

A police source said:'It may come down to just two guys having a fistfight.'

Mr Furtch said that he finished his shift in a restaurant and he and a friend were harassed by the two men in McDonalds.

Damien Furtch
Damian Furtch

'Beaten for colourful clothing': Furtch left the McDonald's but was pursued on to the street by the two men who punched him to the ground allegedly amid a stream of homophobic insults, which Bray denies

When they tried to leave, Mr Furtch, who is 6ft 4in, was attacked on the street allegedly amid a stream of homophobic insults

A series of vicious punches were administered to the 26-year-old, who ended up with two black eyes.

He later wrote on his social networking site: 'I thought I was safe in the city I loved but apparently wearing fluorescent colored clothing and pink shoelaces really bother some f****** a**holes to blind side me and hit me.'

He captioned the images, 'Four Stitches, Thanks Bitches!'

Mr Furtch and a friend had reportedly left their job at a restaurant when they were harassed by two men in the McDonald's on Sunday.

In recent days, a tipster identified Bray as the assailant and police reached out to his family in an effort to find the wanted man, police sources said.

Bray’s family persuaded him to contact police and give himself up.

A second suspect is still being sought and the investigation is ongoing, police said.

Damian Furtch

'I like the kid'; Furtch is a popular employee at the Pink Tea Cup restaurant in Manhattan 

Mr Furtch's boss at the Pink Tea Cup restaurant Lawrence Page told the New York Daily News that Furtch was a popular employee. 

He told the paper: 'He said he was beat up. He said he was in the hospital all day. Then I saw the pictures. I took a liking to the kid quick.'

Page said that Mr Furtch was an aspiring actor and model who was a 'gentle giant' who had just moved to New York from California.

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