Colorado man facing bias-motivated charges after attacking TV reporter

Zoom in: Egan tackled and choked Alex before several people intervened and restrained the suspect until officers arrived on the scene, Grand Junction police said.

• According to an arrest affidavit obtained by the AP, Egan, driving a taxi, had pulled up next to Alex at a stoplight and asked: "Are you even a U.S. citizen? This is Trump's America now! I'm a Marine and I took an oath to protect this country from people like you!"
• The attack occurred outside of the television station and was caught on camera, the arrest affidavit said.
• Egan was transported to the Mesa County Detention Facility and charged with bias-motivated crimes, second-degree assault, and harassment.

Egan's lawyer, Ruth Swift, did not immediately return an email from Axios.

Zoom out: Alex is a native of Detroit. KKCO/KJCT reported that he was driving a news vehicle at the time.

• Alex told police that he believed he had been followed and attacked because he is a Pacific Islander, per the AP.

Context: The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, recently shared with Axios new data that showed 2023 hate crimes overall hit records across 10 of the nation's largest cities, rising 16%.

• Hate crimes against all Asian American communities have been on the rise since the pandemic, with 1 in 3 Asian American adults reporting being the subject of a hate act last year.

Grand Junction is around 250 miles west of Denver.