2 Arrested in Attack on 3 Gay Men; Hate Crime Suspected

Two Newhall men were booked on suspicion of committing a felony hate crime Thursday after sheriff’s detectives said they broke into a Santa Clarita residence and beat three gay men who lived there.

Osvaldo Renteria, 26, and Manuel Villasenor, 32, also face charges of robbery, burglary and assault with a deadly weapon stemming from the 2:30 a.m. attack in the 24200 block of Pine Street, according to Det. Dennis Blackstock of the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Station.

Renteria and Villasenor, who authorities said were known gang members, are being held at the Santa Clarita Jail in lieu of $500,000 bail, Blackstock said. The pair are scheduled to be arraigned in Newhall Municipal Court today.

The victims told authorities the men had warned them to move out of the neighborhood.

“It appears that these two suspects and others who belong to an area gang had been committing strong-arm robberies and extortions against these victims and other people--specifically undocumented immigrants living in the area,” Blackstock said.

Blackstock said Renteria and Villasenor began partying Wednesday in celebration of Cinco de Mayo. Early Thursday, they went to the home of the three victims, forced their way in and demanded beer and money.

During the attack, the suspects “referred to the victims as being gay and told them they needed to move out of the neighborhood,” according to the Sheriff’s Department report.

The victims, ages 35, 26 and 20, suffered cuts and bruises. One was taken to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital for a head injury and released.