BLOOMINGTON, Indiana (AP) — A 56-year-old woman has been charged after an 18-year-old Indiana University student was repeatedly stabbed in the head on a public bus in an attack the school says stemmed from the victim was Asian.
The victim told investigators she was standing and waiting for the exit doors to open on a Bloomington Transit bus Wednesday afternoon when another passenger began hitting her in the head, Bloomington police said in a statement.
Surveillance footage from the bus showed no interaction between the two women before the attack.
A witness who was also riding the bus followed the woman’s attacker and contacted police, who later arrested Billie R. Davis of Bloomington. Davis has been charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault, according to court records.
The victim was treated at a hospital for multiple stab wounds. Her name was not revealed.
Court documents show that Davis said the victim was targeted because of her race, according to WNDU-TV.
Citing court records, WRTV-TV reports that Davis told police that he stabbed the woman multiple times in the head with a knife, because “he would be one less person to blow up our country.”
The records did not list an attorney representing Davis.
“Bloomington was sadly reminded this week that anti-Asian hate is real and can have painful impacts on individuals and our community,” said James Wimbush, vice president of Diversity, Equity and Multicultural Affairs at Indiana University, in a statement. a statement. “No one should face harassment or violence because of their origin, ethnicity or heritage. Instead, the Bloomington and IU communities are stronger because of the great diversity of identities and perspectives that make up our university and community culture.”
Bloomington is in southern Indiana. Mayor John Hamilton called behavior like the bus attack “not acceptable” and said it will “be dealt with accordingly.”
“We know that when a racially motivated incident like this resonates throughout the community, it can make us feel less safe,” Hamilton said in a statement Saturday. “We stand with the Asian community and everyone who feels threatened by this event.”
In recent years, Asian Americans have been increasingly subjected to racially motivated harassment and assault, especially after the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
Copyright 2023 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.
