Authorities have filed charges against a 56-year-old woman for stabbing an 18-year-old Indiana University student on a public bus, an attack the school says was motivated by the fact that the victim is Asian.
The victim told investigators that she was standing Wednesday afternoon waiting for the exit doors of a Bloomington Transit bus to open when another passenger began stabbing her in the head, Bloomington police said in a statement.
Surveillance camera footage from the bus did not show any interaction between the two women before the attack.
A witness who was also riding the bus followed the woman’s attacker and contacted police, who later arrested Billie R. Davis of Bloomington. Davis was charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault, according to court records.
The victim was treated at a hospital for multiple stab wounds. Her name has not been released.
Court documents show that Davis said the victim was targeted because of her race, according to WNDU-TV.
Citing court records, WRTV-TV reported that Davis told police he stabbed the student multiple times in the head with a folding knife, because “it would be one less person blowing up our country.”
The records do not identify an attorney representing Davis.
“This week, Bloomington was sadly reminded that anti-Asian hate is real and can have painful consequences for individuals and our community,” James Wimbush, vice president of Diversity, Equity and Multicultural Affairs at the University of California, said in a statement. Indiana University. “No one should experience harassment or violence because of their origin, ethnicity or heritage. Rather, the Bloomington and university communities are stronger because of the vast diversity of identities and perspectives that make up our campus and community culture.”