27-year-old Houston-area resident Conrad Alvin Barrett was arrested for allegedly sucker-punching a 79-year-old in a 'knockout' game style attack, The Associated Press reported. Barrett, a white man, while the victim is a black man, made a brief appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Frances Stacy on Thursday who scheduled his hearing slated for Friday afternoon.
The attack reportedly happened on November 24 in Katy, Texas but "it was not until 12 day later that authorities connected the attack to the cellphone video of it," according to The AP.
Barrett allegedly "showed the video on the night of the attack to an off-duty arson investigator he met at a restaurant in nearby Folshear. According to a criminal complaint, Barrett asked the off-duty investigator and the woman with the investigator if they knew about the knockout game. He told them he played earlier that day, then showed them the video, prosecutors allege," The AP also reported.
While the attack does not show Barett's face, investigators matched his voice to the voice in the video who was shooting the video, according to news reports.
The criminal complaint "alleges Barrett attacked the elderly man because of the man's race, violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act," according to KHOU, a CBS affiliate station.
The violent 'game,' which has been rampant in the U.S. and Canada in recent months, involves an attacker trying to 'knock out' a victim with one punch. Because Barrett is white, deliberately striking a 79-year-old black man because of his race, amounts to a hate crime.
"Evidence of hate crimes will be vigorously investigated and prosecuted with the assistance of all our partners to the fullest extent of the law," said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Barrett could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison and fined up to $250,000, if he is convicted of committing a hate crime, The AP also reported.
