TV journalist attacked in vicious anti-gay hate crime could suffer permanent injuries

In the video, Belanger said that he was waiting to take a train to work on the morning of May 12 when he was attacked by an unknown man.

“A man, who I do not know, suddenly from close range threw something at my face,” he said in the video. “It had enough force to cause some damage to my left eye. And that’s why I’m wearing the eye patch here, to protect my eye as it heals.”

He was taken to the hospital where he was told that he suffered a corneal and ocular abrasion, which could result in permanent vision damage. He also had internal bleeding.

Using security camera footage, police arrested Vennie Jerome Williams, 39, in connection to the assault. According to Out, police said that Williams “made statements indicating that he assaulted [Belanger] because he perceived that [he] was homosexual” while he was in custody.