DAYTONA BEACH -- A man who slammed his car into a 25-year-old woman riding her bicycle on the sidewalk has been charged with committing a hate crime, police said.
Thomas Cosby, 56, hopped out of his car and yelled racial slurs at Mekeda Cato after he struck her with his vehicle at 701 S. Atlantic Ave. in Daytona Beach, police said. According to police, Cato, who is black, was riding along the sidewalk on the west side of the road when Cosby's car jumped the curb and slammed into her "for no apparent reason", police said.
Cato, of Daytona Beach, was taken to the hospital with a fractured left leg and and unknown internal injuries.
Cosby, of Port Orange, was charged with aggravated battery and simple battery. Both were classified as hate crimes.
After Cosby's car struck Cato, it slammed into a tree and the front porch of a nearby house before rolling over several times and coming to a stop. According to several witnesses, Cato then hopped out of his car and began to scream at the crowd, telling them, "help me kill these (racial slur for black people)"
Crosby was angrily yelling about blacks having sex with his wife and girlfriend.
At one point, he struck another person before being detained by witnesses until police arrive.
When asked what happened to his car, Cosby replied "I turned my car to take him out,"
even though the victim was not a man.
I seen a negar woman (?) this afternoon who had a full on mustache. Are you honestly that lazy that you can not tend to your upper lip on a daily basis!??! This fucking thing would make Tom Selleck blush.
