Police searching for man in alleged racially-motivated Cary greenway attacks

Victims believe the attacks were racially motivated. Two people, a Chinese man and an Iranian man, were assaulted. The attacks allegedly occurred around 11 a.m. on Wednesday.

Cary Police are looking for a man whose picture has now been widely circulated on social media – specifically the NextDoor App.

In one post, a man said the alleged attacker yelled at his family and tried to punch a senior citizen who was "speaking a foreign language." The man compared the attack to those on Asian Americans recently reported across the country.

"We were attacked because we were deemed foreigners in this man's eyes," he said.

One woman, the daughter of a Chinese man who was attacked, also witnessed the attack on the Iranian man.

"I was walking with my parents. We were walking my dog. We saw a couple of individuals walking by. And we had noticed an elderly man who walked past us, and he was talking on the phone in a foreign language."

She said they heard a loud noise behind them a few minutes later. They discovered it was the sound of someone trying to punch the Iranian man, and the man dropping his phone.

Then, she said the jogger ran back towards her family, away from the Iranian man. "He run's back, and he's yelling at us. I was completely in shock. I froze up," she said.

According to her, the suspect shouted "Go back!"

They began recording him. The next thing they knew, something hit the back of their father's head, which they believed to be a water bottle.

They captured an image of the man they believe attacked them and the Iranian man.

Cary Police are actively investigating the case and confirmed they would like to talk to the man in the photograph shared on social media.

"It's absolutely devastating and heartbreaking. It makes me so fearful to leave my house, if a neighbor is going to attack me because of the way I look -- which is something that I cannot change, and shouldn't have to change," she said.