The Gramercy newsstand owner who was viciously beaten during Twitch star Kai Cenat’s PS5 giveaway-turned-riot is pleading for help from the city — and consequences for his attackers.
“I want punishment — any kind of punishment” for the rioters, Liaquat Ali said at his kiosk on East 28th Street and Park Avenue South.
“I want the government to help me. I want financial help.”
Ali, 69, was standing outside of his newsstand when four teens showed up and began beating him in the Aug. 4 incident.
“The terrorist boys attacked me…They punched me here, here, and here,” he recalled, motioning all over his body.
The Jamaica, Queens resident was defenseless as rioters descended upon his merchandise and cash register, ripping off $800 in food and drinks and $2,600 in cash, he said.
Not only does Ali have lingering neck, back, and leg pains which require him to walk with a cane — but his wife and three adult kids back home in Bangladesh may suffer too, since he may not be able to pay the $1,200 rent for his newsstand, he said.
“I can’t send money to my relatives,” Ali said.
Ali filed a police report with the 13th precinct, but so far, no arrests have been made.
“The investigation is ongoing,” a police spokesperson said.
This was the second time Ali – who used to work in a bodega on 28th Street and Sixth Avenue – has been attacked and robbed since taking over his current newsstand almost a year ago.
Six months ago, Ali was sitting inside his kiosk when a man entered through the side door and stole the contents of his cash register and the majority of his merchandise – but only after beating Ali mercilessly, he recalled.
“He beat me and took all my cash.
“I’m scared,” Ali admitted, although he vowed the stand will remain open.
Union Square erupted when thousands of teens turned out for Cenat’s giveaway, then ran rampant — hurling bottles and chairs, climbing on top of the subway pavilion, and even assaulting NYPD officers.
The chaos left at least seven people hurt and 66 in handcuffs.
Cenat, 21, was also arrested and charged with inciting a riot and unlawful assembly.
A witness to the chaos told The Post that Union Square looked like a war zone during the riot.
