NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
GAINESVILLE, Fl, September 27, 2026 — A University of Florida student says he was followed, subjected to racist and homophobic slurs, and physically assaulted while returning to campus after midnight, an incident that appears to correspond with a hate crime recorded in the university’s official crime log.
The student described the encounter in a Sept. 18 post on the University of Florida subreddit, r/ufl, under the heading “Wawa Hatecrime Incident.” The post sought the public’s help identifying the person involved.
According to the student, he had been studying at Marston Science Library and stopped at a Wawa for food before walking back toward campus shortly after midnight Thursday, Sept. 17.
The student said a man approached him, began recording a selfie video and used an anti-Indian slur and a homophobic slur while referring to him.
“I tried walking away, but he continued following, calling me slurs,” the student wrote.
The encounter allegedly escalated when the student attempted to cross the street. He said the man stepped in front of him, moved closer and pushed him hard enough that he stumbled backward.
The student said he then began walking quickly away, but the man continued following him and threatened to look inside his backpack. According to the account, the man reached toward the backpack, but the student moved it away and began recording the encounter himself for his safety.
The student said the man continued directing slurs at him and told him to kill himself.
“Right before he assaulted me, I was genuinely fearing for my life, and he prevented me from walking away,” the student wrote.
The student also wrote that the man was “impersonating someone from Theta Chi” in the video. NRI Pulse has found no evidence establishing that the individual was a member of the Theta Chi fraternity, and the student’s wording itself does not claim that he was.
The student’s account is supported in significant part by an entry in the University of Florida’s official crime log.
UF Public Safety lists an incident at 12:17 a.m. on Sept. 17 on the university’s main campus as a “Hate Crime – Simple Assault,” with the reported bias category listed as “National Origin.” The incident was reported to a campus security authority at 2:04 a.m. that morning and entered into the crime log on Sept. 22.
The timing, location and classification closely correspond with the account posted by the student, although the public crime-log entry does not identify the victim or provide enough detail to independently establish that it refers to the same encounter.
The Reddit post attracted hundreds of upvotes as members of the UF community discussed the incident and attempted to help identify the alleged assailant.
As of Sept. 27, NRI Pulse could not independently verify the identity of the person shown in the student’s recording or determine from publicly available information whether an arrest or criminal charge has resulted from the incident.
The episode comes amid broader concerns about safety on and around the Gainesville campus. Earlier in September, Gainesville television station WCJB reported that UF students and parents had raised concerns following a series of incidents involving people unaffiliated with the university, particularly around campus at night.
Under the federal Clery Act, the University of Florida maintains a public crime log of reported criminal incidents. UF says entries are generally recorded within two business days of receiving a report unless disclosure could interfere with an investigation or jeopardize an individual’s safety.
The Sept. 17 incident is currently classified by the university as a hate crime involving simple assault and national-origin bias.
Wawa Hatecrime Incident
by u/AdeptnessFirst6668 in ufl
