New York, New York - The attack of a 31-year-old Asian woman by another woman wielding a hammer is the latest in a string of hate crimes in New York City.

The New York Police Department is asking the public for information on a woman who attacked two Asian-American women with a hammer near Times Square on Sunday.

One of the victims, who goes only by Theresa, told ABC7 that as she and a friend were walking near Times Square, they noticed a woman they thought to be drunk talking to herself.

According to Theresa, they tried to pass by quickly, but the agitated woman said, "Take off your f****** mask,' which [was] shocking."

The woman then started repeatedly swinging her hammer at the victim, with her friend trying to help block the attacks. Theresa was taken to the hospital and was last known to be in stable condition.

Also in New York in March, two security guards standing nearby stood and watched a man kick an elderly Asian-American to the ground and beat her badly enough to fracture her pelvis. The guards shut the door on the woman as she lay wounded.

The number of violent crimes against Asian people or people of Asian descent has increased to the point that they are the most common victims of hate crimes in the city, according to the NYPD.

National legislation aims to make it easier for local law enforcement to investigate hate crimes.

Attorney General Merrick Garland has announced he wants to "prioritize criminal investigations and prosecutions" related to hate crimes and has launched an "expedited review" into how the Justice Department can improve its handling of these cases.