A California woman is accused of penning racist letters targeting Asian Americans, asking them to move out of one suburb, according to a report.
Nancy Arechiga, 52, allegedly left at least five of the handwritten letters on homes and other locations in San Leandro, which is a suburb of Oakland, news station KGO-TV reported.
In one letter, Arechiga wrote to foreign-born residents, saying, “You, because we consider you’re a stranger, one bad person for this country, leave, go far away, go back to your country, the place you belong.
“You have until the day May 23, 2020, Saturday 10:30 a.m. to leave this country place no Asian allowed. My Country USA,” the letter continued.
One resident, who only wanted to be identified as Trinh, said her family found a letter both at their home and a nearby park.
“It was shocking and the whole family was really shaken up at it. I can’t comprehend hatefulness reading this letter sent chills down my spine,” she told the outlet.
Footage from a Ring doorbell camera allegedly caught Arechiga posting one of the notes on a home, SF Gate reported.
Within hours, police located her still in the area with a backpack that contained more letters, the report said.
Arechiga was arrested and booked into Alameda County’s Santa Rita Jail in Dublin.
“San Leandro is a community of beautifully diverse people, who share a common desire to live in harmony, and free from intimidation,” San Leandro Police Lt. Isaac Benabou told KGO-TV. “We welcome people’s rights to express themselves, but not in a manner that infringes upon a community’s sense of security and wellbeing.”