San Francisco police increase patrols after recent attacks on Asian Americans

San Francisco police increase patrols after recent attacks on Asian Americans

by

On Wednesday, a man and a woman, both of Asian descent, were beaten in San Francisco in separate attacks by the same suspected suspect, police said.

Separately, three men were arrested for their alleged involvement in a robbery and theft of an Asian-American man last month inside a self-service laundry in San Francisco.

Police patrols are being stepped up in coordination with local organizations in the Asian American community and the Pacific Islands, the department said Wednesday.

Violence against Asian Americans increased across the country, coinciding with the Covid-19 pandemic. Several unprovoked attacks on elderly Asian Americans in the Bay Area this year have led, in part, to the creation of a special response unit focused on crimes against Asians, especially older Asians in Alameda County.

Vicha Ratanapakdee, an 84-year-old Thai woman, died after being abruptly attacked during a morning walk on January 28, according to San Francisco district attorney Chesa Boudin. A 19-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and abuse of the elderly in the case, he said.
In Oakland’s Chinatown neighborhood, police said a man violently pushed three unsuspecting people on Jan. 31, injuring a 91-year-old man, a 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman. A 28-year-old man was charged with three counts of assault assault, according to the prosecution’s documents.
Elsewhere in California, in response to increased attacks on people of Asian descent, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department are meeting with groups in Asian American communities this week to spread awareness and encourage citizens to report suspicious threats or activities.
The Mayor of San Francisco, Race of London, in relation to the patrols announced on Wednesday, said, “No one should live in fear that his race or ethnicity could make him a victim.”

Two people attacked within minutes in San Francisco

On Wednesday morning in San Francisco, an Asian man and woman were attacked by the same suspect in separate attacks, police said.

“Investigators are working to determine whether prejudice was a motivating factor in the incident,” said police officer Adam Lobsinger in a statement.

Asian Americans reported being shot at least 500 times in the past two months
The result of the confrontation was recorded on video by CNN affiliate KPIX. The footage shows a crowd of police and paramedics gathered around an Asian woman, who holds an ice pack next to her head and face while screaming. A man can be seen on a stretcher handcuffed while being treated by a paramedic.

“He hit people,” the woman is heard saying in the video, speaking in Cantonese. “He intimidates old people,” she said, “so I punched him.”

The woman says to the man “You idiot”, then says to the police: “He intimidated me, he intimidated me, idiot”.

Both the suspect, a 39-year-old man and a 75-year-old woman, were taken to the hospital for life-threatening injuries, said Lobsinger, with the suspect being treated for “an unrelated prior medical condition”.

Police officers were called in after an earlier attack on an 83-year-old man, Lobsinger said. A local security guard chased the suspect on foot, Lobsinger said, and while he was on the run, police said he assaulted the woman.

The injured woman told KPIX that she was leaning against a pole when the man punched her without provocation.

The victims and suspects have not been officially identified and the incident remains under investigation.

Video arrests made in laundry robbery

Three young men were arrested on Wednesday for allegedly stealing and assaulting an older Asian man last month in an attack captured by surveillance video inside a self-service laundry in San Francisco.

The February 23 attack took place near Nob Hill and Chinatown. An Asian-American had just sat inside the laundry room when three people invaded, threw the man on the floor and stole him violently, showed a surveillance video obtained by the affiliate of CNN KGO-TV.

The 67-year-old victim, who was not identified, suffered non-fatal injuries in the attack, police said.

Three suspects were arrested in an attack captured on surveillance video

The arrested men were identified by the police as Calvin Berschell, Jason Orozco and Nolowde Beshears. All three are 19 years old and live in Antioch, California, a suburban community located about 45 miles east of San Francisco.

Arrest warrants were handed out Wednesday morning in Antioch and all three were taken into custody without incident, according to an SFPD statement. During the execution of a search warrant, the police seized two weapons and evidence related to the theft.

Court dates and bail have not yet been set. It is not clear whether any of the three men hired lawyers.

Police expect the men to be charged with theft, abuse of the elderly and assault. A case has not yet been brought to the public prosecutor’s office, according to spokeswoman Rachel Marshall.

CNN’s Eric Levenson, Stephanie Becker, Dan Simon and Jadyn Sham contributed to this report.

.Source