The man who bashed a New York City rabbi and knocked his yarmulke off his head outside the Chelsea Hotel is a personal shopper to the stars who has hobnobbed with the likes of Celine Dion, Rhianna, Brooke Shields and Mayor Eric Adams.
Aleksander Janik freely admitted to The Post on Wednesday that he thumped Rabbi Chezky Wolff outside the Chelsea Hotel, “Yes, I pushed him. I pushed him with my bag.”
But, video of the incident from Tuesday night reveals it was much more than a push — it show Janik swinging his heavy bag and smacking the rabbi.
The force knocks his glasses off his face and sends his yarmulke sailing into the nearby bushes.
But, Janik claimed he was defending himself after being harassed. And said he isn’t an antisemite — saying that he’s “half Jewish.”
He denied Wolff’s claim that Janik shouted “dirty Jews” during the dispute — which started when his off-leash dog Hudson approached the door of Chelsea Shul.
“I didn’t say that. Absolutely not. I never used this word. That’s not my nature. I support the Jewish community. I’m a very huge fan of every religion,” Janik said.
Janik said that after the pair exchanged words about the dog, Wolff started following him and recording.
“I protect my dog and myself. A stranger man who’s following me with their phone in my face, I ought to protect myself. I don’t know him,” Janik said.
“When he opened the door, he was very angry, upset. I don’t know why. It’s just a dog. It’s not like you can be upset at a dog.”
He said he lashed out and hit the rabbi to send a message: “Please go away. Don’t harass me. He was just constantly behind me and it was just inappropriate to follow me with his phone.”
Surveillance footage exclusively obtained by The Post shows Janik first slap a phone out of Wolff’s hand before slugging Wolff in the head with his tote bag as dumbfounded diners watch on.
Janik, with his unleashed dog at his heels, walks off seemingly unbothered, leaving Wolff grabbing at his head and picking his belongings off the sidewalk.
Janik’s social media accounts are littered with pictures of him with famous faces. He posts photos of glitzy events and art galleries.
His Instagram account opens with the message: “‘Ubuntu’ is an ancient African word meaning ‘humanity to others.'”
Janik told The Post out that his mother was Jewish, though he himself doesn’t practice any Judaic traditions.
Wolff’s lawyer, Carey London, scoffed at the deflection: “We have no response to an antisemite’s lies. Again – the Jewish people just want peace.”
Wolff was left with a small mark on his head, but no serious injuries
Cops and paramedics responded, but no arrests in the case had been made as of Wednesday evening.
