A Colorado man was arrested for investigation of committing hate crimes in California after two young adults of Asian descent were targeted with racist and homophobic comments as they recorded a TikTok food review video at an In-N-Out Burger restaurant, police said.
The incident occurred Dec. 24 in the San Francisco Bay Area city of San Ramon. The video’s spread online caught the attention of Police Chief Denton Carlson, who put word out on social media seeking the identities of the victims and the suspect.
“During their meal, a male suspect approached the victims unprovoked and engaged in a homophobic and racist rant, causing the victims to fear for their safety,” the San Ramon Police Department said in a news release.
In the video, which now has nearly 4 million views, the camera is facing the two young people as they eat french fries and an order known as “The Flying Dutchman.” A male voice can be heard asking them if they are filming themselves while eating, before making a homophobic comment.
Later, a male voice can be heard asking one of the diners if they are Japanese or Korean. The diner responds that they are Korean, leading the man to make comments about Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s leader. The other diner then urges the first to stop engaging with the man, who threatens to spit in the diners’ faces. He continues to make racist and offensive comments.
After the video was posted online, police detectives contacted the victims and began an investigation that led to the arrest of Jordan Douglas Krah, 40, of Denver, on Dec. 26, the department said. Krah was booked into jail on suspicion of two counts of committing a hate crime.
He posted bail, Lt. Tami Williams said in an email. Detectives will meet with prosecutors this week to request charges be filed.
Krah could not be reached for comment Wednesday. A call to a telephone listing under that name was answered by a recording saying the voice mail box was full.
The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to emails.
The viral video follows a rise in hate incidents against people of Asian descent during the pandemic and increasing hateful rhetoric toward LGBTQ people online.