Two elderly Asian women were stabbed as they waited for a bus in downtown San Francisco — the latest in a series of attacks against Asian Americans in the US since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.
A woman working at a flower stall on Tuesday afternoon told KGO-TV that she saw a man walking on Market Street shortly before the attack carrying “a pretty big knife” with knuckles on the handle.
“Her back was turned and all I see is feathers came out of her jacket, so I am very sure that she got sliced,” the witness said of one victim. “He walked away like nothing happened, like Sunday morning.”
Police said the 63-year-old and 84-year-old women remained hospitalized on Wednesday.
The 84-year-old was initially treated for life-threatening injuries, but her medical status has been upgraded to non-life-threatening, police said.
Victoria Eng, the granddaughter of the older victim, Eng Chui-fong, on Wednesday said that she was in a stable condition in intensive care, the San Francisco Examiner reported.
“She is coherent and speaking on the phone already,” Eng said. “She is a true fighter.”
Eng’s grandmother was stabbed in the right arm with a long knife that entered her chest, Eng wrote on a GoFundMe page to raise money to cover expenses from the woman’s surgery.
The younger woman had injuries that were not life-threatening, authorities said.
Patrick Thompson, 54, of San Francisco was arrested about two hours after the attack. Investigators were working to determine whether the incident was motivated by racism, although Police Chief Bill Scott told the Police Commission on Wednesday that there was not any indication so far that the attack was a hate crime, the Examiner said.
It was not immediately known whether Thompson had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. The San Francisco Public Defender’s Office did not immediately know whether it would be assigned to the case.
San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin said that his office expected to announce charges against Thompson yesterday.
His office also planned to start a pilot program to provide support to elderly Asian victims of crime, he said in a statement.
The attack highlighted the dangerous climate that Asian Americans have faced since COVID-19 entered the US after surfacing in China. Racially motivated harassment and assaults have occurred throughout the US.
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