Netflix chef Wendy Drew seen fighting off accused racist attacker in San Francisco
ByIsabel Keane
Published Sep. 9, 2024
Updated Sep. 9, 2024, 7:30 a.m. ET
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A chef who starred in a Netflix series bravely defended herself against a homeless man who called her a racial slur and began beating her up in a wild, caught-on-camera brawl that left her with a broken nose and a gruesome eye injury.
Surveillance footage captured the horrifying moment Wendy Drew, who appeared in the series “You Are What You Eat: A Twin Experiment,” was confronted on Sept. 1 inside a liquor store in downtown San Francisco.
“This guy, a regular-looking guy, walked by and called me the N-word,” Drew told NBC Bay Area of the attacker who was walking a dog.
5Netflix chef Wendy Drew was able to fend off an attacker who called her a racial slur in San Francisco.NBC Bay area
“I said, ‘Why are you calling me that? Why?’ Then he turns and starts hitting me on the head. He punched me like three times on the head. I’m like, you’re not going to get away with hitting me,” Drew also told the San Francisco Standard.
Drew pushed the man into a liquor store, where the two fought and Drew urged onlookers to call 911.
“I basically had him in a bear hug. I had my legs around him, and he kept trying to get away,” she told the outlet. “His dog comes by. I thought the dog wanted to bite me, but the poor thing was just licking my face. I loosened my grip, and that’s when he started repeatedly punching me in the face.”
Surveillance footage obtained by the Standard shows Drew brawling with a man whom police identified as Irvin Rivera-Lara, 31, a homeless man with a violent criminal history now charged with a hate crime.
A customer was seen trying to step in and pepper-spray Rivera-Lara, who holds Drew down on the floor and repeatedly punches her — as his dog runs around the store, at points even licking the chef as she’s attacked.
As the two finally manage to stand up, Rivera-Lara can be seen leaning over Drew and releasing a barrage of violent punches to her face.
5Drew was attacked while walking downtown earlier this month by a man police identified as Irvin Rivera-Lara.NBC Bay area
After she manages to stand, Drew can be seen trying to prevent Rivera-Lara from leaving the store, but he shoves her out of his way. Rivera-Lara was held outside the store until police arrived.
Drew told the outlet she thought her attacker looked “like a tech bro” in his hoodie, but eventually learned he was homeless and had a criminal record.
“He just looked like someone who was taking his dog for a walk,” Drew said. “It turned out he was homeless. It didn’t seem like he had any mental issues at face value.”
5Footage of the attack shows Rivera-Lara holding Drew down near the store’s cash register.NBC Bay area
5Drew had to go to the hospital to receive treatment for her injuries.NBC Bay area
Rivera-Lara was arrested on suspicion of assault likely to cause great bodily injury, committing a hate crime and providing false information to an officer.
Last year, he was arrested on suspicion of attacking the owner of a sandwich shop who confronted him for urinating on trash cans near the restaurant.
Drew showed off her painful injuries, including a massive gash on her face that had to be glued shut.
5Drew had a concussion, broken nose and a massive gash on her face that required glue to be held shut.NBC Bay area
“I also got a concussion and a broken nose. It may require surgery; they are not sure yet,” she said, adding that she also received a tetanus shot.
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins formally charged Rivera-Lara on Thursday with assault likely to cause great bodily injury and battery with serious bodily injury. The charges include special allegations that the incident was a hate crime.
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“Hate crimes have no place in our community and must be addressed swiftly by the criminal justice system,” Jenkins said in a statement.
“Attacks like this demean and degrade individuals while also shaking whole communities. I will do everything in my power to ensure there is accountability and justice in this case.”