Hate Crime Alleged in Beating of Man

Authorities are calling an attack on a man at a Ventura bar earlier this week racially motivated.

Witnesses said Hannah Onfire, who is black, was at Gig’s Bar on Grand Avenue shortly after midnight Tuesday when four men suddenly began assaulting him.

Onfire, 31, of Ventura was beaten with fists, glasses, beer bottles and bar stools, authorities said.

The attackers also yelled racial slurs throughout the attack, witnesses told authorities.

“They beat him up pretty bad,” said Eric Nishimoto, spokesman for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department. “He didn’t know any of the attackers.”

Onfire was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, where he was treated for injuries that included a deep cut on the back of his head.

Authorities later arrested all four men at their homes in Ventura.

Taken into custody were Lukas Gonzales, 21, Jeremy Imes, 28, Mark Keaser, 24, and James Fillingame, 24.

The men were arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and interfering with civil rights by force.

Fillingame was also arrested on suspicion of transportation of a controlled substance. Keaser also was arrested on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance for sale and being under the influence. in Ventura County Jail.