Harris County Sheriff's OfficeFederal prosecutors in Texas have charged Conrad Barrett for allegedly playing the 'knockout game' and breaking the jaw of his 79-year-old victim.
WASHINGTON - A Texas man has been charged with a federal hate crime for allegedly breaking a 79-year-old man's jaw in what authorities described as a racist take on the 'knockout game.'
Conrad Barrett, 27, was arrested after he boasted of the sucker-punch while at a bar and showed cellphone video of the attack to a fellow patron who turned out to be an off-duty cop.
Barrett stalked the victim as the other man exited his car in a residential area in Katy, Texas, on Nov. 24, authorities said.
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Video of the attack, according to authorities, shows Barrett approach his victim and ask him: 'How's it going, man?' before clocking him.
The victim, who is black, fell to the ground, and Barrett ran away laughing, authorities said.
Barrett, who is white, had also saved on his phone videos in which he used a racist epithet and asserted that black people 'haven't fully experienced the blessing of evolution,' according to the charging affidavit.
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In another clip saved to his phone, Barrett stated: 'The plan is to see if I were to hit a black person, would this be nationally televised?'
And in more video footage shot before the Nov. 24 attack, Barrett drives a car around a shopping mall parking lot and says that he's trying to work up the 'courage' to play the 'knockout game.'
Yet another video from his phone documents Barrett announcing that he has 'found the perfect African-American suspect,' but he then appeared to change his mind, according to the affidavit.
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In the devilish 'game,' goons attack innocent strangers at random in public, attempting to knock them out with a single punch. A recent spate of such attacks, which are often videotaped on smartphones, have led to a stream of press coverage, but federal prosecutors say that the twisted practice has been documented as far back as 1992 under various names.
In announcing the charges against Barrett, acting U.S. Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels said the U.S. Department of Justice would work with partners 'to ensure that hate crimes are identified and prosecuted, and that justice is done.'
After Barrett showed the video to the off-duty cop, who works as an arson investigator, the lawman left the bar and alerted a police officer nearby, who then confronted Barrett and confiscated his phone.
The victim did not initially file a criminal complaint, police said. Officers recognized the neighborhood in the video and canvassed it. Neighbors led police to the victim, whose relatives then filed a formal report with police.
Barrett was charged Tuesday with violating the federal Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Barrett's arrest affidavit was unsealed Thursday when he appeared before a federal magistrate. He is due back in court Friday for a detention hearing.
jstraw@nydailynews.com
Posted by Unknown on Thursday, December 26, 2013 - Rating: 4.5
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