Video of an 80-year-old Asian man being attacked by teenagers in the San Francisco Bay Area has gone viral - and increased anger about alleged hate crimes against Asian people.
Police are looking for two teenagers and another unidentified individual.
In the video, an 80-year-old Asian man is shown being shoved and attacked by two people. The man is heard calling for help - but no one did. However, laughter can be heard.
Another person is seen in the video and does nothing.
Police said two suspects were in their teens - likely as young as 16. The car used by the teenagers was later identified in another video caught a few hours later involved in an armed robbery in San Leandro. The teenagers allegedly robbed a younger woman of her purse.
"It's crazy to see kids that age doing that kind of stuff going down that road already," the man that captured the video said. He did not want to be identified and only asked to be referred to as "Marcos" for his own safety.
Officials said they were not yet labeling the incident as motivated by race. However, the victim told officers he believed the attack was motivated by hate.
After he was attacked, the 80-year-old victim said the suspects took his watch. He sustained minor injuries. Police said because the suspect yelled for help, the suspects fled.
San Leandro Police said violence and crimes against Asian Americans had increased by more than 300% since the start of 2020. The recent attack on the elderly man in the Bay Area comes just weeks after the heinous stabbing attack on two elderly Asian women in San Francisco.
California police departments said they would increase their numbers of officers on patrol. They are also working with prosecutors on how to deal with the growing number of crimes committed by minors.
