A man was arrested for attacking an ice cream vendor in National City with a metal tool, police said Monday, which left the vendor with a broken wrist and unable to work.
Mack Jackson, 42, was arrested on Sunday after he was identified as the suspect who attacked Emilio Hernández at an Arco gas station on the corner of Harbison Avenue and E. Plaza Boulevard at about 6:30 p.m. on April 29, the National City Police Department said.
Hernández was pumping gas into his ice cream truck after a long day of work when a man in a red sedan suddenly pulled up on the right side of his car, he told NBC 7's sister station Telemundo 20.
The man, later identified as Jackson, was agitated and began yelling at Hernández, hurling racially motivated attacks at him, according to police. The suspect then pulled out what police described as a metal "car club."
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"That’s when the man came with one of those steering wheel locks and began to hit me," Hernández told Telemundo 20 in Spanish. "I raised my arms and I initially didn’t feel when I started to bleed. He threw me, he kicked me."
Hernández said the impact to his wrist left a gash on his skin and he hasn't been able to work since. But the insults hurt far worse.
“When I was thrown on the ground, he told me, ‘I hate Mexicans and if I ever see you again, I’m going to kill you.’ He told me as simple as that, so it made me more afraid," Hernández said.
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The attacker also broke his ice cream truck's windows, Hernández said. But as soon as he turned his back, Hernández got up and ran inside the Arco.
Police said Jackson then took off from the scene.
Luckily, several witnesses saw the attack and were able to give police a description. Investigators were also able to collect evidence from the scene, including video surveillance that helped them identify Jackson as the suspect, police said.
National City police began searching for Jackson, and on Sunday, he was located "in the process of committing a vandalism," according to NCPD.
Jackson was booked into San Diego County Jail on charges of assault with a deadly weapon, driving under the influence of drugs, resisting an officer and vandalism. He is being held on $50,000 bail pending an arraignment.
