A man has been charged with a hate crime for assaulting a gay Asian man and his parents.
Sean Lai and his parents was walking through Washington DC’s Observatory Circle neighbourhood when they encountered Patrick Joseph Miller Trebat.
Trebat, 38, reportedly called Lai a “faggot” and shouted “you are not Americans” him and his family before telling them, “you don’t belong here.”
He then punched Lai’s 64-year-old father with a closed fit in the back of the head”, causing him to fall to the ground. Trebat also pushed Lai’s 61-year-old mother to the ground.
Lai attempted to intervene but engaged in a “physical struggle” with Trebat.
All three victims were taken to hospital with non life threatening injuries but Lai’s father suffered a broken wrist. His mother suffered arm pain, and Lai himself had a fractured finger.
Trebat, who was released from jail two days prior to the attack, will face three bias-related charges of assault, making it a hate crime.
William Miller, a spokesperson for the US attorney’s office, said the office is “continuing to investigate the facts and circumstances of the case” and had “no further comment at this time”.
In other news, there have been over 9,000 anti-Asian attacks since the start of the pandemic.
