Driver Accused of Intentionally Hitting Man with Car Indicted on Hate Crime Charge

A Massachusetts driver has been indicted on a federal hate crime charge for allegedly hitting and seriously injuring a man with his car in a racist attack last December, the Justice Department announced on Wednesday.

The indictment, returned by a federal grand jury in Boston, accuses the driver, 77-year-old John Sullivan, of intentionally running down 38-year-old George Ngo in Quincy. It alleges that Sullivan “willfully caused bodily injury” to Ngo, who is referred to only by his initials in the document, and attempted to cause bodily injury to him using “a dangerous weapon,” his car, because of Ngo’s “actual and perceived race and national origin.”

Ngo, who is Vietnamese, was hospitalized for weeks after the attack, which the man’s sister and niece both witnessed, CBS Boston reported. Prosecutors say that Sullivan hit Ngo multiple times with his car, accelerating to target the man after they briefly exchanged words over Sullivan’s speeding, according to the news station. Sullivan allegedly shouted racist remarks at Ngo and his family in the midst of the ambush, including comments about how the victim is Asian. He allegedly told the family to “Go back to China.”

Read the source article at cbsnews.com