Palo Alto Hate Crime Suspect Arrested

Palo Alto CA

26 January, 2021

12:56 PM

Description

PALO ALTO, CA — A South Bay woman was arrested Friday night in Palo Alto on suspicion of assaulting a man based on his nationality, police said. Officers responded shortly before 8 p.m. to a call reporting a battery in progress in the 300 block of California Avenue, but the suspect left the scene by the time they arrived according to police. The suspect, identified as Sarah Ann Neal, 42 of Santa Clara, confronted a man on a sidewalk who was talking on his cell phone asking him for money, police said. When the victim, a man of Middle Eastern decent in his 50s, refused, Neal, who is white, questioned his immigration status and demanded to see his identification, police said. When the victim again refused, Neal pulled a laptop computer from her bag and attacked him with it, striking him twice on his arms as he tried to defend himself, police said. The suspect then picked up a large wooden sign from the sidewalk, swung it at him, and missed, police said. The victim told police that Neal told him he probably hates women and was "the reason the country was going down." Neal fled the scene after a witness said they were going to call police. Officers at about 8:25 p.m. located Neal on El Camino Real at Los Robles Avenue and detained her, police said. Neal was booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and a hate crime, police said. Both charges are felonies. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the Palo Alto Police Department's 24-hour dispatch center at (650) 329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to [email protected] or sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through the PAPD's free mobile app, downloadable at www.bit.ly/PAPD-AppStore or www.bit.ly/PAPD-GooglePlay.