Two young men face hate crime charges after they allegedly beat a San Jose State University student while yelling homophobic slurs, the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.
Sunnyvale resident Josue Medina Flores, 19, and Fremont resident Christian Gabriel Nunez Petty, 20, were charged with felony assault with hate crime allegations in connection with the unprovoked attack on the San Jose State campus early Saturday morning, the district attorney’s office said.
The male student and two female friends were walking on the campus at about 3:44 a.m. when they passed by the two suspects, according to the district attorney’s office. The suspects allegedly asked the student if he was gay and yelled anti-gay slurs at him. The student and his friends ignored the suspects and continued walking.
The suspects allegedly then ran up to the student and attacked him, punching him in the head more than two dozen times and kicking him while yelling anti-gay slurs, the district attorney’s office said. The suspects allegedly also struck one of the student’s friends when she jumped on top of him to shield him from the punches and kicks.
The suspects fled from the scene, but San Jose State police officers managed to arrest them before they could make it off the campus, according to district attorney’s office.
The student was taken to a local hospital to be treated for his injuries and later released, the district attorney’s office said.
The university’s security camera network captured video footage of the attack, the district attorney’s office said.
The suspects are scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon, according to the district attorney’s office. They face prison time if they are convicted.
“If you hurt someone because of their race, religion, gender, or sexuality, you will be arrested and prosecuted,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement. “Tolerance and diversity are cherished values in this community. We back up them with one voice – and the full might of the law.”