TORRANCE — A warrant was out Thursday for the arrest of a woman who went on a pair of racist rants aimed at Asian Americans at a Torrance park in June, but she is wanted in connection with a separate battery charge, according to reports.
The charge stems from an October incident at Del Amo Mall in Torrance, KCAL9 reported.
Lena Hernandez, 56, allegedly verbally assaulted a custodian at the mall, then physically attacked a female bystander who tried to intervene.
A warrant is out for Hernandez's arrest, according to KCAL9, which also identified her as a retired social worker.
Hernandez was the subject of two viral videos in June which show her going on racist rants against Asian Americans in Wilson Park on Crenshaw Boulevard.
In the first case, on June 10, Hernandez was caught on video verbally accosting a young woman exercising at the park.
"Go back to whatever (expletive) Asian country you belong in," the woman yelled. "... This is not your place. This is not your home. We do not want you here."
On June 11, an Asian man posted a video online showing him and his son being accosted and mocked by the same woman on the same day.
"You need to go home," the woman tells the man.
The videos prompted hundreds of people to gather on June 12 at Wilson Park to protest the racist behavior, and city officials held a news conference to identify the woman and ask for the public's help to locate her.
"Our hope is that the members of our community will never have to endure such treatment," Torrance Police Department Chief Eve Berg said.