Man arrested for attack on transgender woman in Seattle

SEATTLE -- Police have arrested a 28-year-old man for allegedly attacking a transgender woman at Cal Anderson Park, the Seattle Police Department said Friday.

Police were called to the park just before 4 p.m. Thursday. Witnesses said the suspect had harassed a transgender woman, threw a cup of ice water at her and punched her in the head. The suspect also assaulted a witness, who had tried to intervene, police said.

Officers spoke with the victims but couldn’t find the suspect, who had fled the scene.

Two hours after the incident in the park, Seattle police were called to a disturbance in the 1400 block of Boylston. Officers discovered the suspect in the Boylston incident was the same man they’d been looking for in the Cal Anderson assault, police said.

Officers took the 28-year-old man into custody and booked him into King County Jail for assault.

Investigators are now reviewing the Cal Anderson case for possible charges of malicious harassment, Washington’s hate crime statute, police said.