Indiana U. student arrested in hate crime

Bloomington Police arrested an Indiana University student on several charges after he allegedly attacked a Muslim woman.

The report says a 47-year-old woman was sitting at a table when a man shouted epithets and racially charged threats at her and grabbed her by the neck.

Prior to the assault, police say Bickford was reportedly yelling derogatory and inflammatory statements about African-Americans and police.

Bickford slammed the woman’s head into the table and attempted to remove her headscarf as the her husband rushed to the scene.

According to WXIN, Bloomington police were called to the Sofra Café Saturday night on a report of an assault.

The alleged attack ended when the woman’s husband and one other man came to her defense and held Bickford on the ground until police arrived. Bickford allegedly spat in the men’s faces during the wait. WTTV reports that Bickford kicked at the windows of the squad auto, and bit an officer in the leg once he arrived at the Monroe County Jail. Bickford’s blood-alcohol level was 0.195, more than twice the state’s legal limit of 0.08, WTTV-TV reported.

Bickford’s bond is set at $2,000.

According to Indiana University spokesman Mark Land, Bickford is listed in an online directory as an IU Bloomington student.