Man accused of unprovoked attack on interracial couple in Washington state

OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Police say a man who told police he was part of a white supremacist group stabbed an interracial couple outside a bar in Olympia in a case that has garnered national media attention.

Daniel B. Rowe is jailed on $500,000 bail on investigation for assault and malicious harassment.

Olympia police spokeswoman Laura Wohl says Rowe approached the couple Tuesday night and without speaking, stabbed the 47-year-old black man in the abdomen and also knifed his 35-year-old white girlfriend. Their injuries were not life-threatening.

The male victim was able to chase the 32-year-old suspect, who fell and was knocked unconscious.

Police say the attack appears to be unprovoked and that Rowe reportedly made racists statements to officers.

The Olympian newspaper reported that Rowe allegedly told police that he had gone downtown after hearing about anti-police graffiti that had been put up Sunday night, according to court documents.

The Olympian reported that Deputy Prosecutor Joseph Wheeler said in court Wednesday that the attack “has all the hallmarks of a hate crime.”

“This black-and-white couple was simply expressing their love for one another,” Wheeler said.

Public defender Christian Cabrera says Rowe recently moved to the Olympia area after living in Richland.