A man in Los Angeles reportedly drove through a red light and rammed his car into a moving crowd of people protesting hate crimes against Asians this week, with the incident confirmed by police Wednesday.
Footage of the incident showed the man driving forward into a group of people carrying stop Asian hate signs in Diamond Bar. The man then made a U-turn and shouted derogatory and profane remarks at the crowd of protesters.
Officials at the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department said that they are now investigating the incident as a hate crime.
Another video taken of the incident showed the man entering his parked car on the side of the road while repeatedly shouting profanities at the peaceful protesters. He also shouted and swore at the person holding the camera.
Diamond Bar's residents are predominantly Asian American and Pacific Islanders. According to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The LAPD said Wednesday that they are currently working to identify the driver of the black car that was caught on video. The car's California license plate was visible in both videos.
County Supervisor Janice Hahn said that she was present at the rally but had left when the incident happened. Hahn said in a post on social media that she was "disgusted" by the man's behavior.
"This kind of racist vitriol happens far too often in our communities and is exactly why so many AAPI residents, and other residents of color, don't feel safe in their own neighborhoods," Hahn said.
Over the past few weeks, violence against people of Asian descent has escalated across the nation. Most of the incidents were unprovoked and some were clearly racially motivated.
Last week, a gunman shot and killed eight people inside multiple Atlanta spas. Six out of the eight victims were Asian women.
A recently published report showed that there were at least 3,795 reported hate incidents against Asian Americans from March 2020 to February 2021.
