Man arrested on hate crime charges for smashing church window in New York

A man accused of smashing the windows of a Queens church with a giant stick has been arrested on hate crime charges, police said Sunday.

Tonnie Smith, 32, was taken into custody over the attack on the Community Church of Christ in Jamaica earlier this month.

The Queens man has been charged with criminal mischief as a hate crime and aggravated harassment as a hate crime, police officers said.

Police had been hunting Smith since he was caught by security cameras allegedly smashing two glass windows outside the church on 108th Avenue just before 1:30 a.m. on March 8.

Footage showed shards of glass flying out of both windows.

Smith then fled on foot, according to police.

The suspect lives a few blocks from the church, police said.

A motive for the attack was not immediately clear.