16 hours ago
Man arrested on suspicion of antisemitic attack in S.F.'s Marina charged with hate crime
A man suspected of punching and kicking another man in San Francisco's Marina District in an antisemitic attack was charged Tuesday with assault and hate crime allegations, the District Attorney's Office said.
Juan Diaz-Rivas, 36, faces two counts of assault, with allegations that the attack was a hate crime and caused serious injuries to the victim.
Diaz-Rivas remained jailed Tuesday afternoon. He was arrested after the attack, which occurred on Fillmore Street near Moulton Street around 2:20 a.m. Friday.
The victim and friend were sitting on a curb waiting for an Uber after a night out when a man started shouting, 'F— Jews, free Palestine,' the friend, Alana Gans, 28, told the Chronicle in an interview Sunday.
When Gans told the man she was Jewish and asked him to leave, the man walked over and said, 'F— you,' Gans recounted.
When she stood up, so did her friend, who got in between her and the man, Gan said.
The other men recorded on their cellphones, laughed and shouted, 'F— Jews,' too, Gans said.
As she tried to pull her friend's arm to walk away, the group sucker-punched and kicked her friend on the ground.
The men also pushed to the ground and kicked an employee from the nearby Balboa Cafe who tried to intervene, Gans said, adding that the attack lasted about 30 seconds.
According to prosecutors, the victim fell to the ground, hit his head and lost consciousness. Gans said her friend suffered a swollen lip, as well as two bumps on the front of his head and a third on the back of his head.
The assailants ran away, only to return and yell, 'F— those Jews,' Gans said. When officers showed up, she pointed them out.
Police said a second suspect was cited for battery and released. It was unclear Tuesday whether he was charged in connection with the attack.
