Andrew Decarlo. —Arlington Police Department

A Somerville man is charged with a hate crime after he allegedly began spewing racial slurs and anti-immigrant language at a Verizon Wireless clerk in Arlington who said he couldn’t fix his phone Tuesday night.

Andrew Robert Decarlo, 36, faces an assault with intent to intimidate charge as a hate crime, as defined under state law, according to a news release.

Police say he went to the Verizon store on Massachusetts Avenue and asked to have his phone fixed around 8 p.m. But since Decarlo uses a different phone carrier, the clerk directed him to another store since he’s only allowed to repair Verizon phones.


That’s when Decarlo “allegedly became irate and started shouting racial and anti-immigrant epithets at the clerk,” according to the release.

Decarlo reportedly continued doing this, and also “was sweating and grinding his teeth,” the release says.

He clenched his fists and allegedly began “moving towards the employee in a menacing manner. This caused the clerk to fear for his safety,” the release says.

Police obtained a description. They found Decarlo soon afterward and arrested him. Police know Decarlo; he was scheduled to be arraigned on Wednesday in Cambridge District Court.

“The hard-working men and women of Arlington deserve to earn a living free of harassment and hatred,” Chief Frederick Ryan said in a statement.