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Suspect In Chelsea Dallas BBQ Chair Bash Brawl Identified

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - The NYPD believes they know the identity of the man caught on video smashing a chair over the heads of two men at a Dallas BBQ restaurant in Chelsea earlier this month.

Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce identified the suspect as Bayna El-Amin.

"He is a career criminal," Boyce said. "We believe he has fled the state."

The shocking incident took place at around 11 p.m. on May 5.

Boyce said the NYPD had identified El-Amin about a week ago.

Sources tell CBS2 El-Amin has 15 prior arrests including Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan and New Jersey. Most of the arrests are for assault and drug possession, sources said.

Witness Isaam Sharef caught the attack on video and posted it to YouTube and Instagram. The video shows Jonathan Snipes being flung to the floor and kicked as others screamed, "Stop!"

Warning: Some May Find Video Disturbing

After Snipes' partner pulls him away, the attacker raises the wooden chair and slams it down on both men's skulls. Snipes slumps in a chair, while the other collapses to the floor.

Chelsea Dallas BBQ Beating
Man wanted in connection with a fight at a Dallas BBQ in Chelsea. (credit: NYPD)

Mayor Bill de Blasio called the attack disturbing.

Following the attack, a photo published by DNAInfo showed Snipes with cuts on his head and near his ear. Snipes said he was attacked alongside his boyfriend Ethan York-Adams, 25.

Jonathan Snipes
Jonathan Snipes, 32, said a man attacked him inside a Dallas BBQ on West 23rd Street after calling him an anti-gay epithet. (Credit: Ben Fractenberg/DNAInfo; used by permission)

Snipes spent hours talking to detectives with the NYPD Hate Crimes Unit, telling them a dinner date was underway when the drink spilled, and the suspect sitting at another table allegedly made an anti-gay slur.

The attacker fled the scene and remains at large.

Anyone with any information about the suspect is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).

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