Man arrested in Ballard for assault and hate crime offenses

Seattle Police arrested a 56-year-old man on Sunday evening for assaulting his coworkers and a food delivery driver because of their race.

Police responded to a disturbance at a restaurant in the 5300 block of 15th Ave NW. Upon arrival, restaurant employees directed the police to a man walking away from the scene who they identified as the suspect.

After police detained the suspect, the employees told police that the man, who worked with them at the restaurant, tried to assault the food delivery driver through the drive-thru window because he didn’t speak English.

The employees then tried to intervene, and the suspect turned and assaulted them with his hands while shouting obscenities about their race, according to Seattle Police. The suspect reportedly also threw chairs from the dining room which struck two employees.

SPD says they called Seattle Fire to evaluate the victims for injuries. Police then booked the suspect into King County Jail for investigation of felony assault and hate crime offenses.