Asian American Restaurant Owner Attacked on Video By Alleged Racist in Sacramento

An Asian business owner was harassed inside his restaurant by a man who refused to follow the California governor’s guidelines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

What happened: The incident occurred on July 18 at 6:50 p.m., according Stephen Tran, who runs the BurgerIM restaurant that has been serving the community in Carmichael, Sacramento for over a year.

A customer who cam in to place an order and was asked to wait outside while they prepared the meal as part of their restaurant’s policy, according to Tran’s Facebook post.
The man was allegedly asked twice by the cashier and the owner to leave, but refused to do so.
The man then allegedly began to make racist remarks towards Tran, saying, “F**k you and your ch*nky ass policy.”
Tran claimed he replied by saying he was just following the governor’s rules, but the man refused to listen and instead told the business owner, “Go back to China you COVID ass.”
The man then threw the cup he was drinking from at Tran, who was preparing to give him his refund in the video.
A physical altercation ensued between the patron and Tran, who punched the man after he pushed him when he climbed over the counter.
“This restaurant has been open for 1 year and 3 months,” Tran told NextShark. “We have never experienced anything like this before. Even at my past jobs, I’ve never dealt with anything like this.”

The aftermath: Tran filed a police report following the attack and asked the officers to issue the man a no trespassing papers.

Tran told NextShark they are now working with the city of Carmichael and the Sacramento District Attorney’s office to file several charges against the man.
The charges include hate crime, assault, child endangerment as his child was present at the time of the attack and assault with a deadly weapon if the man tested positive for COVID-19.
In addition, a member of the community started a GoFundMe campaign for Tran to help him and his family with legal assistance.
“As of today the city of Carmichael has drafted a letter to the DA and Sheriffs Department on pressing charges,” the update in the campaign said. “If we do not see results soon, the DA in SF said he will contact them. As for Legal actions, we have a few lawyers who have contacted us. Some pro bono and some that are charging. We will see how to move forward.”

Feature Image Screenshot via Stephen Tran