Novato man arrested twice in 1 week for suspected hate crimes

NOVATO, Calif. - A 59-year-old man was arrested twice in one week for suspected hate crimes, the Novato Police Department said Tuesday.   

The police department said in a news release they were first alerted to a harassment incident near downtown Novato on Saturday afternoon. Upon arrival on scene, officers learned the suspect, Brian Collins of Novato, had allegedly harassed a victim repetitively with threats and racial epithets.   

Officers arrested Collins and re-booked him into the Marin County Jail on suspicion of stalking, making threats, hate crime offenses, and committing a crime while on bail.   

According to police, Collins that day was out on bail for similar criminal violations.   

"We are aware that this is the second time Collins has been arrested for similar charges within the past week. At this time, the Marin County District Attorney's Office has elected to file charges for both cases," the police department said.   

Novato police said they received a complaint on Aug. 2 from a bicyclist, who said a driver attempted to ram him with a pick-up truck.   

"The adult victim told officers that a male driver in a pick-up truck approached him on Fourth St. and accused him of stealing his bicycle. The suspected driver threatened the victim's life, while using racial epithets as the victim rode away on the bicycle," the police department said.   

Later that day, Collins came to the Novato Police Department and gave a statement to detectives about the incident, according to police.   

He was then booked into the Marin County Jail on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, criminal threats and hate crime.