The man who violently attacked a 75-year-old man in his garage in southwest Las Vegas is now facing hate crime charges.
Hate crime: On Friday, Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson announced that the misdemeanor battery charge against Christian Lentz, 44, has been upgraded with a hate crime enhancement.
“We will not tolerate such horrible acts of hatred and violence in our community,” Wolfson said in a news release. “These actions are unacceptable and will have consequences.”
What happened: On May 30, Amadeo Quindara was in his garage when his neighbor, Lentz, approached and threatened him. Although Lentz initially left, he was captured on home security footage returning about a half hour later.
Lentz allegedly punched and slammed Quindara to the ground before leaving the scene. In the video, Lentz can be heard yelling racial slurs at Quindara, telling the 75-year-old man that he would “be on a ventilator” and “die.”
Injuries: Quindara suffered bruises to his face, a black eye and deep cuts on his head. However, his injuries do not equate to “substantial bodily harm” and the attack was not caught on camera, which makes Lentz not likely to be charged with a felony due to insufficient evidence.
The victim believes that Lentz’s attack was rooted in racism and that he intended to kill him.
Arrest and charges: Although Lentz was arrested for residential burglary, he was released from jail less than a week later. Wolfson filed a misdemeanor battery charge against Lentz on June 12.
Lentz now faces charges of residential burglary and elder abuse, perpetrated as hate crimes. However, Wolfson said that the court can treat elder abuse with a hate crime enhancement as a gross misdemeanor, which would only carry a maximum jail sentence of about a year.
Lentz is expected back in court on July 3.
