ARLINGTON, MASS. (WHDH) - A Somerville man is facing hate crime charges after police say he hurled racial and anti-immigrant epithets at a store clerk during an explosive tirade at an Arlington Verizon Wireless store Tuesday night.
Andrew Robert Decarlo, 36, was arraigned Wednesday in Cambridge District Court on charges of assault with intent to intimidate as a hate crime.
Officers responding to the cellphone shop on Massachusetts Avenue for a report of a disturbance about 8 p.m. spoke with a clerk who told them that a man had entered the store, asked him to fix his cell phone, then quickly grew irate, according to the Arlington Police Department.
The clerk asked Decarlo if his phone had a Verizon Wireless subscription, and he stated that it did not, police said. The clerk told Decarlo that he could not help him because he was only allowed to handle Verizon phones and directed him to another store for further assistance.
Decarlo then allegedly started shouting hateful and racist remarks at the clerk. He continued swearing, was grinding his teeth and clenching his fists as he moved around the corner of the storefront counter and began moving toward the clerk in a menacing manner, according to police.
The clerk provided officers with a description of Decarlo and he was arrested a short while later.
“Nothing gives an individual the right to put another person in fear for their safety, and I am very proud of the professionalism of our officers to find this individual,” Police Chief Frederick Ryan said.
Decarlo is said to be known to police due to his lengthy criminal history.
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