Greg Shillinglaw

gshillingl@lohud.com

The teens were charged with the felony hate crime after making disparaging remarks to victims.

Police are still looking for a third man who helped carry out the attacks.

The most serious injury reported was a broken wrist and most of those attacked suffered bruises

WEST NYACK – Two teenagers accused of rampaging through the Palisades Center on Black Friday and attacking people, including two Orthodox Jews, have been charged with assault as a hate crime, Clarkstown police said Tuesday.

Chris Bujaj, 17, of Tuckahoe and Ardijan Mehaj, 17, of Yonkers were charged with the felony hate crime after two Orthodox men were called "dirty Jews" during the assault at the shopping center, police said.

Police are still looking for a third man who participated in the attacks, which left five people injured during a 2:30 to 3:30 a.m. spree on the year's busiest shopping day.

The remaining suspect is described as a white male who is 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 8 inches tall. He was wearing a black vest, gray hoodie and dark jeans during the alleged assaults.

"We're assuming the two other young gentlemen know who he is but they haven't provided that information yet," Clarkstown Officer Peter Walker said.

Bujaj and Mehaj were arrested Monday and arraigned in Clarkstown Justice Court on charges of misdemeanor third-degree assault and third-degree assault as a hate crime. Bail was set at $25,000 each.

They are scheduled to return to court Friday. Information on their attorneys wasn't immediately available.

Walker credited the media and the police department's Facebook page with helping identify Bujaj and Mehaj.

Police have said the teens were not playing the "knock-out game" — trying to "one-punch" people unconscious. The most serious injury reported was a broken wrist and most of those attacked suffered bruises.

"There was no reason for the attacks, except for possible intoxication or just looking for trouble," Detective Lt. Glen Dietrich told The Journal News in early December. "They were kind of grabbing people and punching them."

The victims told officers that the trio had eastern European accents, possibly Russian or Albanian. They were seen leaving the mall's parking lot in a 2012 or 2013 black four-door Honda Civic, police said.

Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Clarkstown detectives at 845-639-5840 or the Clarkstown TIPS line at 1-877-639-6233.

Twitter: @gshilly