Cal Poly student assaulted in antisemitic hate crime

March 4, 2026

By KAREN VELIE

San Luis Obispo police officers are investigating the assault of a Cal Poly student on Saturday night as a hate crime.

Shortly before 10 p.m., a group of males in a large white truck drove by Cal Poly’s Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi while yelling antisemitic slurs at the residents. Five to six college-age males then walked onto the Alpha Epsilon Pi property.

After causing a verbal altercation, one of the suspects punched a member of the Jewish fraternity in the head. The suspects then fled to their truck and drove away.

The suspects were wearing trucker hats, blue jeans and cowboy boots, according to a crime bulletin from the Cal Poly Police Department.

The students reported the crime on Monday. Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong responded with an email to students and staff.

“Hateful acts that target members of our Jewish community are hurtful, disgusting and simply unacceptable,” Armstrong wrote. “Antisemitism and all forms of hate and discrimination run counter to the values at Cal Poly and have no place at our university.”