A federal judge has sentenced a Washington man to 4.5 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for a hate crime conviction. Adan C. Hernandez-Mayoral, 25, of Auburn, violently assaulted and stabbed a black female passenger in a racially-motivated attack on a King County Metro bus. The incident occurred on March 7, 2024.

Hernandez-Mayoral boarded the bus and immediately began making racially charged comments about black people. He then started antagonizing the victim and yelled, “I don’t like black people, f*cking hate ’em,” according to court documents. Hernandez-Mayoral referred to the woman as “Rosa Parks” and demanded she move to the back of the bus. The victim refused to comply.

When the bus doors opened at a stop, Hernandez-Mayoral grabbed the woman, pushed her off the bus and into a fence, and then immediately began physically beating her. He then used a knife to stab the woman repeatedly. The victim sustained severe injuries but survived. Hernandez-Mayoral fled the scene and was later arrested by the Kent Police Department. 

“Today, we have delivered justice with the sentencing of Adan Hernandez-Mayoral for his brutal, racially motivated attack on the victim,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division in a press release. “Assaults like these destroy our communities by breeding fear and distrust of public places and facilities. The Justice Department will continue to aggressively prosecute such cases to restore safety and confidence in our cities’ streets and transit systems.”

Hernandez-Mayoral pleaded guilty to Hate Crime Causing Bodily Injury in December 2025.

Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Seattle Field Office, added in the press release: “The victim in this case was minding her own business on a familiar public transit route when a stranger made offensive comments about her race, threw her off the stopped bus, and then brutally assaulted her with a knife. Together with our partners like the Kent Police Department, the FBI will hold accountable those like Mr. Hernandez-Mayoral who engage in violent crimes.”

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Kent Police Department.