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Michael Sangbong Rhee #psycho #racist losangeles.cbslocal.com

A Lake Forest man faces a hate crime charge after allegedly kidnapping an Asian woman, believing she was white, with the intent to sexually assault her.

Michael Sangbong Rhee, 37, was arrested Thursday night at his home in Lake Forest. Irvine police say Rhee may have attacked a woman, believing she was white, in retaliation for the rise in hate crimes against Asian people.

Irvine police say an Asian woman was sitting in the driver’s seat of her car near her apartment Thursday afternoon when she looked up to see Rhee standing at the door, holding a handgun. She told police she did not recognize Rhee, who ordered her to get into the back of her car if she wanted to live.

The woman said she offered Rhee her wallet and money, and he replied they would “do that later,” before getting into her car through the passenger side door and pushed her into the backseat, according to police. She struggled with Rhee, who she told police began to grope her, then yelled to a maintenance worker nearby that he had a gun.

Police say Rhee got out of the car and ran through the apartment community, driving away in his own car. Surveillance cameras captured his license plate as he drove away, according to police.

A search of Rhee’s home turned up the vehicle linking him to the assault and a BB gun similar to the weapon described by the woman, Irvine police said.

Detectives believe Rhee — who is Korean — targeted the woman because he thought she was white, based on his own statements, and that the assault was in retaliation for hate crimes that have skyrocketed against Asian people.

Anaheim protesters #fundie losangeles.cbslocal.com

[Bolding added.]

Anaheim’s police chief Thursday cited insufficient evidence in the decision not to arrest an off-duty Los Angeles police officer who fired a weapon during an altercation with a group of teenagers.

[...]

Hundreds of people marched through suburban Anaheim streets late Wednesday, some blocking traffic and carrying signs that said “no shooting zone.” Police arrested two dozen people, including children, after the crowd ignored orders to disperse.

A forensics team Thursday searched for evidence at the LAPD officer’s home, which was vandalized Wednesday night, along with the officer’s vehicle.

A second home, located around the corner from the officer’s residence, was mistakenly defaced by protesters who thought it belonged to the LAPD officer. Neighbor Joe Gulrich, 76, said his house was spray-painted and police told him he should leave for his own safety. When he returned late at night, he found a rock had been thrown through his front window.

On Thursday night, a much smaller group of protesters showed up to demonstrate in the neighborhood of the LAPD officer. However, following Wednesday night’s violence and vandalism, Anaheim police in riot gear taped and blocked off the area, preventing them from getting through.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Police Protective League said Thursday the cellphone video shows the officer was physically assaulted by multiple individuals and sustained injuries in Tuesday’s incident. The union said an officer has the right to self-defense no matter the age of the offender.