Berkeley police: Man with blade charged with hate crime

A man who accosted a Black man in Berkeley, using a racial slur and brandishing a blade at him, has been charged with a misdemeanor hate crime, according to court records.

The incident happened Sunday in the 1800 block of University Avenue near Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Berkeley police wrote.

Alain Krause Campos initially told police that he had been assaulted that day, BPD wrote in charging papers.

But further investigation found that Krause Campos had used a racial slur and tried to fight the other man while waving a blade at him, BPD wrote.

When officers arrested Krause Campos, they found "two improvised clubs, a utility razor knife" and another bladed weapon, according to charging papers.

He was arrested on suspicion of exhibiting a weapon, disturbing the peace, a hate crime and possession of dangerous weapons, which is a violation of the Berkeley Municipal Code.

Krause Campos "used racial slurs to describe the victim" and told police he had confronted him because "he pissed me off," police wrote in charging papers.

Alain Krause Campos. BPD

He was ultimately charged with a hate crime and exhibiting a deadly weapon, both misdemeanors, and released on his own recognizance, according to court papers.

He is scheduled to return to court May 16 to enter a plea.

Krause Campos has no other criminal cases listed in Alameda County, according to court records online.

Hate crimes in Berkeley peaked last year, with 46 of them reported in Berkeley, according to BPD data.

Nearly 30% of those hate crimes were described as anti-Black, which was the most common category listed.

So far this year, there have been about 15 hate crimes reported in Berkeley, with 40% of them marked as homophobic. The next most common categories were anti-Black and antisemitic, both with 20% of the total.

Update, 6:50 p.m. The Scanner added the booking photograph to this story when it became available after publication.