A 22-year-old man is accused of stabbing two New York City men -- killing one -- in separate street attacks because he thought they were gay, police said.



Steven Torres, 22, was charged with second-degree murder as a hate crime in the killing of Ever Orozco on Monday, officials said.

Police said Torres is also charged with assault as a hate crime for stabbing a different man last Thursday on the Lower East Side.



Orozco was stabbed near Roosevelt Avenue and 90th Street in Elmhurst as he was feeding a parking meter, witnesses said.

Police said there was no indication that Orozco was gay, which was also true of the 47-year-old man Torres allegedly stabbed in Manhattan.

In the earlier stabbing the victim suffered several stab wounds to his arm and was treated at Bellevue Hospital.

In the second attack witnesses ran after Torres and held him for police until he was taken into custody.



"There was a lot of screaming, and all I could see was the guy was stabbing him -- stabbing him and stabbing him," said Eddie De Jesus, who was in his locksmith shop on 90th Street when he heard the commotion.

Information on a lawyer for Torres was not immediately available.

--Rob Schmitt contributed to this report.