Woman who was filmed hitting and throwing coffee on Muslim man is charged with a hate crime

A woman who was filmed ridiculing and throwing coffee at a Muslim man has been charged with a hate crime, according to Alameda County prosecutors.

Denise Slader, a program technician with the department’s Adult Parole Operations, was caught on video assaulting the man during a prayer service at Lake Chabot in Castro Valley, California.

31-year-old Rasheed Albeshari, was playing volleyball with his friends when he stopped to pray. Slader approached the three men and began insulting them mostly about their religion, said Albeshari. He decided to record the altercation with his cellphone and later published it on his Facebook page.

#Islamophobia After praying, this lady approached us and started yelling at us that we’re brainwashed for believing in…

Posted by Rasheed Albeshari on Monday, December 7, 2015

“The people you tortured are going to be in eternity and heaven.” Slader said in the video. “ You are very deceived by Satan. Your mind has been taken over, brainwashed and you have nothing but hate.”

From the Los Angeles Times:

The video shows an East Bay Regional Park District ranger approaching Slader and telling her she was acting inappropriately. As Slader and Albeshari exchanged words over the cellphone camera, she reached over and struck him, district spokesman Carolyn Jones said.

After hitting him, Slader threw coffee on him, Jones said. Albeshari is listed as the victim in the complaint.

“This kind of intolerance is totally unacceptable,” Jones said, district spokesman. “It’s just appalling on 50 different levels.”

According to Jones, residence use the 120,000 acre park for all sorts of religious practices and the incident was highly unusual.

Following the assault, Slader remain employed with the Department of Corrections however, an official said her acts are currently under review.

“We expect all of our employees to treat everyone with dignity and respect both on and off the job,” department spokesman Luis Patino said in a statement.

Slader’s motive for the attack is unconfirmed however, Albeshari believes her actions were fueled by the recent shootings in Southern California and political rhetoric from public figures like Donald Trump.

“It’s just overwhelming,” Albeshari said. “I think that’s what makes this nation great: tolerance and acceptance.”

Featured image via nbcbayarea

Featured image via screen grab

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