Police have announced a $5,000 reward for information leading to two men who assaulted a Sikh man in west-central Fresno, California.
A hate crime investigation is under way Tuesday after 68-year-old Amrik Singh Bal was assaulted and left with cuts to his nose and hand and a broken collar bone.
On Saturday morning, Bal was warmly dressed, wearing a turban and waiting for a ride to work when authorities say two men in a car approached Bal and began swearing at him.
Police say Bal tried to cross the street, but the men backed up the car and hit him.
Then they got out and beat the man before taking off, and Sgt. Greg Noll says that during the assault, one man asked Bal, "Why are you here?"
Bal was taken to Community Regional Medical Center. He is now at home recovering.
The case remains under investigation.
U.S. & World
Earlier this month, a man was arrested for vandalising a Sikh temple in Buena Park, California.
In September, a Sikh man in Darien, Illinois, was assaulted by a driver who yelled "Bin Laden" at him before reaching into his car and punching him repeatedly until he lost consciousness. He suffered a fractured cheekbone, a laceration to his cheek which required six stitches, a black eye, bruising, and swelling.
