Man chased, beaten in suspected Capitol Hill hate crime

Police say a 37-year-old man is recovering Monday after being chased and beaten by five people on Capitol Hill in what’s being investigated as a hate crime.

The victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center for treatment of a broken nose, minor cuts to his face, and knee abrasions. He told police the attack came early Monday morning after the group began calling him derogatory names referring to his sexual orientation.

The victim told police he’d been walking east on the 200 block of Summit Ave. East when he was approached by two women and three men who were calling him names.

Detective Renee Witt says the man began running, but the group chased and eventually caught him and began assaulting him.

“The victim could only provide vague descriptions of the suspects and described them as two white females and three white males, but wasn’t able to provide more details because he’d been drinking.”

The investigation will be forwarded to the bias crime detectives for review, says Witt.