Man punched in the face several times in racially motivated Edinburgh attack

He was approached and asked if he was Japanese before the assault took place.

A man was punched several times in the face and had his mobile phone thrown across the road in a raciailly motivated Edinburgh city centre assault.The incident happened around 4.20pm in the Southside area on Tuesday, 19 November, 2019.

A 22-year-old man was standing on the corner of West Richmond Street and Richmond Lane when he was approached by another man and asked if he was Japanese.

He was punched several times in the face. His phone was taken and thrown across the road. The man who carried out the attack then ran off along West Richmond Street towards the Pleasance.

The incident happened around 4.20pm in the Southside area on Tuesday, 19 November, 2019.

The suspect is described as white, in his late 30s to early 40s, 5ft 10ins and spoke with a Scottish accent. He was wearing a dark baseball cap, a dark jacket and blue jeans.

Sergeant Nicky MacRae said: “This was an unprovoked attack. Fortunately the victim was not seriously injured.

“There would have been a number of people in the area at the time and we would like to speak to anyone who saw what happened and also who saw the suspect either before or after the incident.

“Anyone with information can contact Police Scotland on 101. Or make a call anonymously to the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, quoting incident 2473 of 19 November.