A Hispanic man said he was stabbed outside a bar and Kennesaw police are treating the case as a hate crime.
The 26-year-old man told police two white men called him “racist names and (said) he was part of the Cartel” before stabbing him near the SuBourbon Bar between 11:50 p.m. Friday and 12:30 a.m. Saturday, according to a report obtained Friday by AJC.com.
The department is treating the attack as a hate crime “based on information received in the initial investigation,” police said in a Facebook post.
“Our primary goal right now is to identify potential witnesses who may have seen anything to corroborate what we have so far,” Kennesaw police Lt. Craig Graydon told AJC.com.
The man was with a friend at the bar, but police said the friend left before the attack.
According to the report, the two began their night at Buzzy Grille before catching a ride-sharing service to SuBourbon Bar, located in the 2700 block of Summers Street.
The victim alleged the men called him racist names and implied he was “part of the Cartel.” The man left the bar and was walking toward Cobb Parkway when a car pulled up and two men got out of it, according to the report.
Police said the victim was hit on the head from behind and sustained a cut on his right cheek. The victim did not specify what object was used in the attack, but told police he was stabbed. After the attack, the man ran to Buzzy’s Grille before driving to his brother’s Marietta home. From there, police said he was taken to WellStar Kennestone Hospital, treated for facial injuries and later released.
The victim said he could not identify the men in the car who attacked him, but believed they were the same ones from the bar, according to the report. He described them as being 6 feet tall with blonde or brown hair. Graydon said the victim is working with police to develop a sketch of the suspects.
A Kennesaw police officer interviewed the SuBourbon Bar manager, who told them she and her security personnel were not aware of any fights in their bar that night. When showed a photo of the victim, the manager said she saw the victim, who was “heavily intoxicated,” and stumbling around the building before sitting on a bench outside the business next to a cooler, according to the report. At one point, she said she saw the victim get into a ride-sharing car.
Police have obtained surveillance footage from the bar and are working with nearby businesses to get additional video of the area.
“(We) haven’t uncovered footage of the physical altercation, but we are still reviewing the video,” Graydon said.
Anyone who witnessed the assault or has information regarding the case is asked to call Kennesaw police at 770-422-2505 or Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477.
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