WASHINGTON – D.C. police are investigating a recent assault as a hate crime.

At about 1:20 a.m. Saturday, police say a white man was attacked in the 1700 block of Euclid Street in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Northwest D.C.

Three black men approached the victim and stole his iPhone and his wallet. The suspects also beat the man.

The victim told police that during the assault and robbery, the suspects said, “This is for Trayvon Martin.”

“The community is absolutely safe and there’s no pattern to these type of crimes,” says Officer Araz Alali, a D.C. police spokesman.

Alali calls the incident “outrageous.” He is optimistic that the suspects will be caught.

The victim suffered from minor injuries.

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