A Brooklyn bar that had opened a few months ago and catered to the LGBTQ+ community closed after a suspect used a gasoline can to set it on fire, New York City Police said.
Following the incident, two victims, a 25-year-old woman and a 23-year-old woman, who were inside the scene, suffered minor burns to the shoulder and around the body and were taken to Wyckoff Hospital in stable condition.
everything inside Bushwick’s Rash Bar it was unrecognizable and in ashes in just 30 seconds. The incident occurred around 9:00 p.m. Sunday when the black-clad suspect entered the bar with the gasoline, dumped some on the floor and lit the fire before running off.
There were three people inside working when the fire broke out.
“I was standing right here when it happened, I just got out,” owner Claire Bendiner said. “Everybody ran out. The side door has a glass front and I looked over and saw flames on top of the roof. It was crazy, it happened so fast.”
The business that was created 5 months ago near Myrtle Avenue it caters to the LGBTQ+ crowd and is known for being packed late into the night. Almost all of the damage occurred inside the bar.
Bendinger said the suspected arsonist boldly left behind key evidence.
“He left the gas can inside. He calmly placed it on the bar counter. He didn’t knock it over or anything,” he said.
Police are reviewing surveillance video from a gas station around the corner that showed someone filling a canister with gasoline minutes before the fire. Flames and smoke from that night also engulfed two apartments above the bar, but everyone could make it out.
Another co-owner told our sister chain NBC New York that the suspect was last seen running down Myrtle Avenue towards Charles Place.
Since the fire, the owners of the bar have been discussing what happened online, questioning whether the alleged fire was caused by hate. The police have yet to say anything about it being related to hate.
The bar has posted an online fundraising campaign to help rebuild and care for two employees who suffered serious burns: a DJ and another person who started working at Rash that same Sunday.
Most owners want to know: Why this bar?
“We’ve been trying to figure it out, but we don’t know the possible motive for the hate crime,” Bendinger said. “This is a weird bar. Maybe a disgruntled customer. I have no idea. It’s hard to get into the mindset of someone who would do this.”
The suspect is described as a male approximately 20-30 years old, 5’9″ tall and 180 pounds.
If you have information, you can confidentially call the authorities at 1-888-57-PISTA.
–
