A Novato man who was arrested and charged with a hate crime on Wednesday, Aug. 2, bailed out of jail and did it again, police said.
The Novato Police Department reported that Brian Collins, who resides in Novato, attempted to ram a bicyclist with his truck on Aug. 2.
A man in a pick-up truck, the victim told officers, approached him on Fourth Street and accused him of stealing his bicycle. The driver threatened the victim’s life, while using racial epithets as the victim rode away on the bicycle.
Several people were interviewed who had witnessed portions of the interaction. The victim provided descriptions of the vehicle, suspected driver, and officers searched the area. An officer later found the vehicle, however it was unoccupied.
At about 5:30 p.m. that day, the driver came to the Novato Police Department and provided a statement to detectives. He was identified as 58-year-old Brian Collins. Collins was booked into the Marin County Jail for assault with a deadly weapon, criminal threats and hate crime charges.
Collins bailed out of jail and on Saturday Aug. 5, he was arrested again in downtown Novato for a hate incident, police said.
When officers arrived at the second incident, they learned Collins had been repetitively harassing the victim. During these incidents, Collins used racial epithets and threats toward the victim.
Officers located Collins and re-booked him into the Marin County Jail for stalking, making threats, hate crime offenses, and committing a crime while on bail.
At this time, the Marin County District Attorney’s Office has elected to file charges for both cases.
The Novato Police Department issued a statement that told the community that “we work in partnership with our community to stand up against all forms of hate expression and hate crimes.”
Hate crimes can be reported directly to any officer, or by contacting our dispatch center at 415-897-4361.
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