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Man Arrested After Threatening Colorado Uber Driver, Saying He Hates 'All Brown People'

The suspect, an Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, also broke the window of a police cruiser and fought with officers, police said.

A former Army Ranger who served in Afghanistan was arrested in Colorado after he threatened an Uber driver, saying he hated “all brown people,” police said.

Sean Scappaticci, 29, was arrested by Colorado Springs police around 4 a.m. Friday as he repeated to police officers that he wanted to kill all “brown people.” The Uber driver, whom police described as a Middle Eastern man in his mid-20s, said he had been driving the passenger home when the threats started.

“The victim, fearing for his life, stopped in the 200 block of South 8th Street and ran from his vehicle,” the police said. “The suspect chased the victim stating that he was going to beat him up.”

Scappaticci was arrested on suspicion of a bias-motivated crime, obstructing a peace officer, menacing and attempt to escape. He was released on $800 bond.

Under Colorado law, a bias-motivated crime is an offense, like a verbal or physical assault or property damage, that is motivated by a person’s race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, physical or mental disability, or sexual orientation.

Police said Scappaticci had also broken the back window of a police cruiser and fought with police officers. After he was subdued, he was taken to a hospital.

An Uber spokesperson told the Colorado Springs Gazette that Scappaticci had been barred from the ride-sharing service. “Discrimination is not tolerated on the Uber app,” the spokesperson said. “As soon as this was reported to us, we immediately removed this rider’s access to the platform.”

The Gazette also reported that Scappaticci was in the Army from 2008 to 2012 and was a Ranger and private first class when he was discharged. The newspaper said he had been deployed to Afghanistan three times and had been awarded two Army Commendation Medals and an Army Achievement Medal.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.