COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) – Officials say the fatal stabbing of a black student visiting the University of Maryland is being investigated by the FBI as a possible hate crime.
Police say Bowie State student Richard Collins III was attacked early Saturday by 22-year-old Sean Christopher Urbanski, who has been charged with first- and second-degree murder along with first-degree assault.
University of Maryland Police Chief David Mitchell said Sunday that he asked the FBI to assist in the investigation after learning that Urbanski belonged to a Facebook group called “Alt-Reich: Nation,” where members post disparaging material about African-Americans and others.
Mitchell says the 23-year-old Collins was visiting friends at the College Park campus when he was stabbed. He was to graduate on Tuesday.
No attorney was listed for Urbanski on online court records.