Millbrae resident charged with hate crime in attack on Latino man

Michael Goggins, 34, pleaded no contest to felony threats to a police officer and misdemeanor hate crime charges, officials said. Michael Goggins, 34, pleaded no contest to felony threats to a police officer and misdemeanor hate crime charges, officials said. Photo: San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office / / Photo: San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office / / Image 1 of / 32 Caption Close Millbrae resident charged with hate crime in attack on Latino man 1 / 32 Back to Gallery

A Millbrae resident who allegedly punched a Latino man after making derogatory comments about Mexicans in Redwood City was charged with a hate crime, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Michael Anthony Goggins, 34, pleaded not guilty to two felony counts of resisting an officer and a misdemeanor hate crime charge Monday at the San Mateo County courthouse in Redwood City, said District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe.

An employee at a Chevron gas station in the 2200 block of El Camino Real called police about 10:40 p.m. on Nov. 9 after Goggins started yelling at the worker, officials said. He shouted, “Why are you in my country?”; “F— you” and “You are lazy” — according to the San Mateo County district attorney’s office.

The suspect then fled to Willow Street, where it’s alleged he randomly attacked a Latino man. The victim, a 20-year-old Redwood City resident, was walking with a friend when Goggins approached and punched him in the chest, said Lt. Sean Hart, a Redwood City Police Department spokesman.

“It appeared to be that the motivation was based on people’s race,” Hart said.

Goggins allegedly spoke to the victim in Spanish, saying, “I’m white, I’m from here, where are you from?” He then used a racial slur to describe the victim before punching the victim in the chest, police said.

Goggins ran to Laurel Street, where he was met by police officer. He ignored police commands, violently resisted officers, and tried to bite them, officials said.

After he was taken into custody Goggins mentioned hitting a Mexican man, “because he is a traitor” and began talking about “aliens invading the country.”

He was taken to a medical center for psychiatric evaluation. He was later booked at the Maguire Correctional Facility, where he was being held on $50,000 bail, prosecutors said.

Hart said Goggins was impaired at the time of the incident but it was not clear if it was due to mental illness or drugs.

The assault came a day after the presidential election, one of many reports of alleged hostility against minorities following the election of Donald Trump.

On Monday, a Latina nanny caring for two toddlers was assaulted in San Francisco’s Fort Mason in another hate crime committed by a possibly mentally unsound man. He told her through broken Spanish, “No Latinos here,” grabbed the woman by the neck, and shoved her, said Nathan Sargent, a spokesman for the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

In Monday’s case, the woman couldn’t positively identify the suspect and there weren’t other witnesses, so the man was not currently facing hate crime or assault charges, officials said.

Chronicle staff writer Kimberly Veklerov contributed to this report.

Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno