Teen Charged With Hate Crime For Beating Of Sikh Man In Darien
By Kate Shepherd in News on Sep 15, 2015 7:28PM
A Willowbrook teen accused of hitting a Sikh man and calling him a terrorist and "Bin Laden" during a road rage incident has been charged with a hate crime, in addition to previous charges of felony aggravated battery, according to a statement by DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin.
The beating took place on Sept. 8 near Cass and 69th in Darien, according to authorities. Police found Inderjit Mukker in the front driver's seat of his car suffering from apparent cuts and bruises on his cheeks. The teen allegedly attacked Mukker and yelled racial slurs at him including, "Terrorist, go back to your country, Bin Laden!"
The defendant also resisted arrest when police arrived at his home and punched a police officer in the face, officials said.
"Crimes based on hatred or prejudices have no place in our society," Berlin said. "Any physical attack motivated in whole or in part by an offender's pre-conceived bias against another individual based on race, religion, disability, ethnic origin or sexual orientation is a crime not only against the victim but against society as a whole. Anyone accused of such behavior will be vigorously prosecuted and held accountable for their actions."