Latino victim in accused hate crime speaks out

It's been more than a year since the autumn night he was beaten and slurred on the street where he lives. For Luis Mario Piña Tigre, the charges brought yesterday against one of his alleged attackers were too little, too late.

Piña Tigre, a Patchogue resident from Ecuador who was accosted in September 2007 as he rode his bike home from work, made his story public after Marcelo Lucero, a fellow native of Gualaceo, was stabbed to death in Patchogue on Nov. 7.

At the time, Piña Tigre, 37, was the fourth Hispanic man to claim he was victimized by some of the teens accused of committing hate crimes against Marcelo Lucero, also 37.

Now, Piña Tigre is one of eight Hispanic victims named in two indictments charging the seven Patchogue-Medford High School students with more hate crimes.In an indictment unsealed yesterday in State Supreme Court in Riverhead, Kevin Shea, 17, of Medford, was charged with second-degree assault and second-degree attempted assault, both as hate crimes, in connection with the beating of Piña Tigre.

"I'm not satisfied because I wasn't able to recognize all of" his attackers, said Piña Tigre, who singled out Shea from a pile of investigators' photos. "But at least it's one."Lucero's brother, Joselo, who called on law enforcement to look into all allegations of racially motivated violence against Latinos in the Patchogue area, said the development was good news for victims, including those who are yet unknown.

"With the presence of the FBI, these cases started coming to light," he said. Earlier this month, federal authorities said they would review such cases. At the Congregational Church of Patchogue, the Rev. Dwight Lee Wolter, whose records from a church meeting of victims were subpoenaed last month by a grand jury, said: "I'm not at all surprised [by the new charges], given what I heard in the room that night."

Since Lucero's death and the outrage that followed over discrimination against Latinos in Patchogue, signs of change abound on Main Street, said Angel Zhicay, who owns a wire service called Amazonas Express on that strip. Fewer teens loiter and harass clients, he said, as police have been more active in the area.

"There's been a lot of people who have been mistreated and disfigured. I've spoken to many of them," he said. "Some haven't wanted to speak, but now they are starting to."

Still, the chance of another attack keeps many ill at ease.

Piña Tigre's wife, Rosa, who learned of his ordeal only after seeing it in published accounts, warned him to beware of those who may want to exact revenge on him. When Piña Tigre told her over the phone of the charges brought against Shea, she said from Ecuador: " 'That's good. But imagine if he gets out and sees you again?' " according to her husband. " 'Now they know who you are.' "

Staff writer Dave Marcus contributed to this story.