Day laborer assaulted in Boulder Creek

In an incident that police are calling a hate crime, a day laborer of Latino heritage was reportedly assaulted at the intersection of Highway 236 and Pine Street in Boulder Creek Saturday morning.
According to the report made to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, the man was standing on the corner at the intersection at 8:40 a.m., when an unidentified man on a small motorcycle stopped, dismounted and struck the man once, informing him that “This town is for white people.”
After being hit, the victim man punched his assailant once, before the unidentified man rode away.
“Obviously, this is racially motivated,” said Sgt. Jim Ross. Deputies detained a suspect, who was later released after the victim, a 27-year-old man from Santa Cruz, was unable to identify his assailant out of a lineup following the incident.
This altercation comes a little less than a year after residents and business owners of Boulder Creek met to discuss ways to curb a trend of violence and intimidation against perceived “outsiders” that had been taking place.
It was suggested at the time, that there were groups of young people in their 20s and 30s with a stance that anyone who doesn’t live in Boulder Creek doesn’t belong.
In 2005, Boulder Creek businesses and townspeople banded together and held a candlelight vigil against racism that had infiltrated the town at the time.
The Sheriff’s Office continues to look for the assailant.
This story has been updated to include the victim’s age and place of residence.