A California man accused of assaulting a Korean American couple and threatening a Japanese American Olympic athlete was arrested Sunday.
Orange County police took Michael Vivona, 25, into custody after he allegedly punched the two elderly Korean Americans in the face Sunday in an Orange park. Vivona is also accused of threatening U.S. Olympic karate athlete Sakura Kokumai, who trains in the park, on April 1, police said.
“I was aware about the anti-Asian hate that was going on. You see it almost every day on the news,” Kokumai told KTLA after the incident. “But I didn’t think it would happen to me at a park I usually go to to train.”
SENATE ADVANCES MEASURE TO CURB ANTI-ASIAN AMERICAN HATE CRIMES
Kokumai, who is set to compete in the Tokyo games, posted video of the incident to her Instagram on April 2. A man can be seen yelling and swearing at her.
Vivona, who is white, is reportedly suspected of elder abuse, a hate crime, and making physical threats. Vivona was arrested Sunday and will appear in court Tuesday, county jail information showed. His bail is set at $65,000.
Vivona’s arrest occurred as public officials around the country commit to addressing hate incidents directed toward Asian Americans.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced the creation of a workgroup April 9 that will look for ways to counter violence and discrimination against Asian Americans.
The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to move forward with debate on legislation addressing hate crimes against Asian Americans. The measure has received bipartisan support.
In recent months, those within California’s Asian American community have reported being victims of a number of incidents that have been charged as hate crimes.
A California man was charged with a hate crime earlier in April for allegedly throwing rocks at a car driven by an Asian woman with her 6-year-old son in tow.
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In March, a man was charged with hate crime battery after allegedly assaulting an Asian American veteran during his trip to a San Francisco grocery store.
