Suspect held in attacks on students (Video)

by Bryan Gibel

Daily Lobo

Police arrested a man Wednesday suspected of attacking more than 20 Indian students in the past several months, said Capt. Murray Conrad of the Albuquerque Police Department.

Turan O'Henry Johnson, 34, is being held at the University Mental Health Center, but cannot be charged until police obtain an arrest warrant, Conrad said.

"This is definitely a hate crime," he said. "We're going to charge it as a hate crime."

Indian students said that for the past several months, a man would approach them and kick them to the ground. He would then say "namaste" - a traditional Indian greeting - and flee the scene, they said.

APD and UNM Police arrested Johnson on Wednesday evening near Central Avenue and Vassar Drive after an altercation between Johnson and several UNM students, said John Walsh, a spokesman for APD.

Conrad said Johnson, a transient, told officers he attacked the Indian students because, "We are at war with them."

Walsh said there is no guarantee Johnson will be kept off the streets until the warrant has been issued.

The University Mental Health Center will release Johnson on Saturday, according to a press release.

Johnson was also arrested June 22 on charges of assaulting an Indian student, Conrad said.

He said students played a key role in catching Johnson when they confronted him Wednesday as he was assaulting another student near campus.

"This would not have taken place without their assistance," he said. "They helped the police by, one, refusing to be a victim, and two, calling the police and pursuing this individual until he could be picked up."

Student Mohammed Aldosari said he was walking across Central Avenue toward campus at about 6:30 p.m. when Johnson came from behind and pushed him to the ground.

"He was strong - he pushed me one or two meters," said Aldosari, who is from Saudi Arabia. "I said, 'Whoa, man. You don't know me.' Then he started yelling at me, 'You are Indian. You are Indian.'"

Students Vamsi Potluru and George Bezerra were walking on Redondo Drive when they saw Aldosari being assaulted.

Potluru said he realized Johnson could be the man who had been attacking Indian students in the area, so he and Bezerra went to help Aldosari.

"We were high on courage and low on skill," he said. "We just went for it. We were on adrenaline at that point. We knew we had to do something about what had been going on."

Johnson tried to get on a bus at Central Avenue and Yale Boulevard, but the bus driver kicked him off, Polturu said.

"That's when the fight first started," he said. "Of course we were scared. He was a big guy, and we don't have experience in fighting, but we didn't want him to get away."

Bezerra, whose yellow T-shirt was stained with drops of blood, said he was punched in the mouth during the fight.

"I was bleeding quite a bit," he said. "My arms and my hands were all red."

Potluru said Johnson ran across the street and tried to get in the back of a pickup truck stopped at an intersection.

Johnson left the truck after the driver told him to get out, he said.

Johnson then ran a few blocks up Central Avenue where he was arrested near Vassar Drive.

Student Bhavana Upadhyaya said she is happy Johnson has been arrested, but she wants to make sure he gets the treatment he needs.

"Everyone is OK, and we are very jubilant," she said. "We don't want to see any harm come of this man, but we also want to make sure he doesn't hurt anyone else. We want the district attorney to prosecute the man for hate crimes."

Video: A press conference with Bhavana Upadhyaya

and the students who fought with Johnson.