Man accused of slashing 7-year-old girl’s neck at a Detroit park

A Detroit man was arrested after allegedly slashing the neck of a 7-year-old girl this week at a park.

Gary Lansky, 73, was charged with assault with intent to murder and felonious assault in connection with the attack Tuesday at Ryan Park in Detroit, according to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, identified the young victim as a Yemeni American Muslim girl who was playing at the park near her home when she was attacked.

Lansky approached the girl at the park and cut her throat with a knife before fleeing the scene, Detroit police said. He was arrested later that day.

Officers responded to a home around 3:45 p.m. for a reported stabbing and found the girl with a laceration to her throat. She was treated at a hospital and released on the same day, police said.

CAIR is calling on the Detroit Police Department and the prosecutor’s office to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident to determine if it was a hate crime.

It said the attack was “a senseless act of violence that will impact the lives” of the child, her family “and all of the other children who were in the park that day.”

A spokesperson for Detroit police said the department already completed its investigation and handed it to the prosecutor’s office, which determined the charges.

“At this time, we don’t have any information that supports hate crime charges,” Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Maria Miller said.

Lansky was arraigned Thursday in 36th District Court. He was released on $2 million bond and placed under house arrest with a GPS tether, according to the prosecutor’s office.

A bond redetermination hearing is set for Monday and a probable cause conference is scheduled for Wednesday, the prosecutor’s office said.

It is not clear whether Lanksy has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.