Officers arrested a 28 year-old man Thursday evening after he attacked a transgender woman at Cal Anderson Park.
Police responded to an assault call at the park just before 4 PM, where they learned the suspect had harassed a transgender woman, before throwing a cup of ice water at her and punching her in the head. The suspect also assaulted a witness, who had tried to intervene.
Officers spoke with the victims but couldn’t find the suspect, who had fled the scene.
Two hours after the incident in the park, Seattle police responded to another report of disturbance in the 1400 block of Boylston. Officers soon discovered the suspect in the Boylston incident was the same man they’d been looking for in the Cal Anderson assault.
Officers took the 28-year-old man into custody and booked into King County Jail for assault. SPD investigators are now reviewing the Cal Anderson case for possible charges of malicious harassment, Washington’s hate crime statute.