Chinese American Man Beaten by Korean Americans in Alleged Hate-Crime Attack, Authorities Say

{snip}

The Feb. 6 incident began when the 25-year-old victim placed an order for takeout at a Korean restaurant in the 18300 block of East Colima Road in Rowland Heights, said Sgt. Steven Kim of the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department’s Asian Gang Team.

A group of seven Korean American men were eating inside the restaurant when one of them approached the victim, whose name was not released, and asked if he was Korean. He responded that he was Chinese and shortly after received his order and left the restaurant.

The man who had approached the victim followed him outside, accompanied by five other men. Once outside, the suspects began beating the victim with their hands and feet “for no apparent reason,” Kim said.

The suspects then vandalized the victim’s car, “causing hundreds if not thousands of dollars in damage,” Kim said. It was later determined they had stolen the victim’s wallet and taken his GPS navigator.

Several bystanders intervened to stop the assault. Kim said the man “suffered numerous cuts and bruises all over his body, including a large cut on the top of his head, which required medical staples.”

Deputies from the Walnut station tracked down and arrested one of the suspects, identified by authorities as Jachin Yi, 18, of Diamond Bar, after witnesses came forward with a license plate number. Deputies also arrested Peter Kim, 19, after they found his ATM card in the parking lot where the man had been beaten.

{snip}

The at-large suspects were identified by authorities as members or associates of the Korean American street gang “Asian Mafia Assassins,” based in eastern L.A. County.

Investigators on Tuesday arrested Hwan Joon Huh, 29, of Diamond Bar, and Jae Du, 25, of West Covina, in their homes. Efforts to track down at least two other suspects were continuing, Kim said.

{snip}