A man in a pirate costume wearing a red “Make America Great Again” slashed another man’s hand with a sword Friday night in San Francisco after the pair got into a verbal dispute, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.
The incident happened around 9:50 p.m. outside a popular skating rink in the city’s Western Addition. Police originally said the victim was wearing a MAGA hat but changed their statement Sunday to say it was the suspect who was wearing the hat.
Scott Sweeney, 24, told the Chronicle the assailant was shouting homophobic slurs at him.
“In my mind I didn’t think it was a real sword until we came out later and police were on the scene and there was blood and the hat on ground,” he said.
Robert Rueca, a police spokesperson for the SFPD, said the victim was stabbed after he approached the suspect.
The MAGA hat has become a source of contention since President Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election.
Just last month an 81-year-old New Jersey man was assaulted during an attack stemming over his MAGA hat.
The man was shopping at a supermarket when the scuffle took place.
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