A dispute has broken out in New York between an Orthodox Jewish security force and a man arrested for hitting a rabbi.

Dwight Chaparro was charged with felony assault after battering the 57-year-old Rabbi Mordechai Stern over the head with a wooden shelf. The attack was said to be because of a parking space.

But according to the New York Daily News Mr Chaparro's mother has now criticised members of the Shomrim, a private security organisation, over how they responded to the situation.

She accused them of leaving her son "black and blue" after the incident.

The founder of one Shomrim group said the criticism was misplaced. He told the Daily News: "People think we go around trying to beat people up. We don't do that."