A D.C. man is speaking out after he said he was assaulted and called a slur in an incident police are investigating as a possible hate crime.
Weeks after he was ambushed on the street, the shock and trauma are still fresh for Zachary Horvath.
He said it all started with a last minute trip to Safeway in Mount Vernon Triangle late June.
“I heard somebody walking away behind me laughing and laughing about the fact that the [expletive] was crying on the ground. That kind of broke my heart a little bit,” Horvath said. “Nobody should ever have to hear that.”
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Horvath said it was before closing as he was trying to get chapstick that he was hit with hateful words by two employees and pushed out of the store.
“It turned into this whole heated exchange up to the front of the store as they were basically pushing me out verbally,” Horvath said. “And they started throwing the word [expletive] around.”
Moments later, as he was walking home on Fifth Street NW, he said the night took a violent turn.
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Before he knew it, he was on the ground bloody and bruised.
“Somebody came up behind me and sucker punched me,” Horvath said. “I didn't know what was going on. I was confused. I was dizzy and my face was throbbing.”
Horvath said he wasn’t able to see who hit him, but he did hear his attacker walk away.
“Physically assaulting somebody and then walking away and laughing that they are lying on the ground hurting and bleeding… it’s kind of like the lowest thing someone can do to somebody,” he said.
The assault happened in front of a bank, so the victim hopes surveillance cameras caught it. In the weeks since, he hasn't heard much from police, but Horvath hopes someone who knows something will speak up so he can get justice.
“It’s not right, like it shouldn't have happened at all. This should never happen to anybody,” he said. “I don't think I would be able to sleep at night if I didn't speak out on this, because this should never happen to anyone again in the future.”
News4 has reached out to Safeway multiple times for a comment, but has not received a response. Anyone with information is asked to call the Metropolitan Police Department.
“It feels like I’m always having to look over my shoulder,” Horvath said. “The fact that I didn't see this coming when it happened scares the crap out of me.”
