A Paterson man says that he was brutally attacked by a group of teenagers who targeted him due to his race.

Constantino Rodriguez, 52, is a father of five. He works in construction and had recently gotten home after a long day of work when he was attacked.

Rodriguez says that he has lived in his neighborhood for more than 30 years. He says that he believes his attackers are from the same area.

He says that a group of five teenage boys approached him and asked him for $5. When he told them that he didn’t have any money, he says that four of them assaulted him. He says they kicked him, slammed him against a fence, hit him with metal pipes, cut one of his hands with a knife and struck him with a hammer.

He says all the teens were wearing ski masks and allegedly told him, “Brother, we have to kill all the Hispanics.”

The teens stole $1,400 from Rodriguez – money that he needed to pay his rent. He says that he cannot return to work full-time due to his injuries.

No arrests have been made. Paterson Councilman Luis Velez says that police are investigating this as a hate crime. They have gathered some evidence, including some surveillance video.