Albany Students Faked Hate Crime, Evidence Shows They Were The Aggressors

The Daily Mail
Feb. 29, 2016

Three University at Albany students who claimed they were victims of a racial attack on a bus last month will soon face charges as police said evidence suggests they were actually the aggressors.

Authorities said students Alexis Briggs, Ariel Agudio and Asha Burwell, all 20 years old, will be charged with third-degree assault following the alleged January 30 attack.

Burwell and Agudio will also be charged with falsely reporting the incident, according to the New York Daily News.

In addition, Agudio will face charges of attempted assault and attempted criminal mischief.

The students allegedly assaulted a 19-year-old woman who was also a passenger on the Capital District Transportation Authority bus early that Saturday, while they claimed they had been attacked.

'The evidence indicates they were actually the aggressors in the physical altercation, and that they continued to assault the victim despite the efforts of several passengers to stop them,' police said in a statement.

Police said during a three-week investigation, they reviewed video from 12 security cameras and four cell phones, and also interviewed 35 people, according to WNYT.

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