'White supremacist' arrested in Washington for racist knife attack spoke about Donald Trump

An attack on an interracial couple, who were allegedly stabbed by a white supremacist in the state capital of Olympia, is being investigated as a hate crime. As the couple were kissing, Daniel Rowe is said to have called out a racial slur and slashed at them with a knife.

The blade grazed the white woman and went into the hip of her black boyfriend. Despite his injury, he managed to give chase and tackle Rowe, who was knocked unconscious when he fell to the ground and hit his head.

Rowe, 32, described himself as a "white supremacist" as he was put in the police car, according to officials.

"He begins talking about Donald Trump rallies and attacking people at the Black Lives Matter protest," Lt. Paul Lower, a police department spokesman, said.

"The suspect is unknown to the victim and the attack appears to have been unprovoked," Olympia police said in the statement.

Officers believe the confrontation could have been racially motivated. Rowe had tattoos saying "skinhead," "white power" and "hooligan" as well as a Confederate flag.

Laura Wohl, an Olympia police spokeswoman, said the reason behind the attack on 16 August "seems to be purely racial".

Rowe had recently been released from Washington State Penitentiary around 300 miles away. He had moved to the Olympia area about three weeks before the attack and had previously lived in Richland.

"This has all the hallmarks of a hate crime," said Deputy Prosecutor Joseph Wheeler, according to The Olympian. "This black-and-white couple was simply expressing their love for one another," he added.

Judge James Dixon set bail at $500,000 (£382,000) and ruled there was probable cause for three charges, including second-degree assault with a deadly weapon and one count of malicious harassment. He pronounced the allegations as "extremely serious".