Allie Spillyards

Police Search for Suspect After Autistic Man Assaulted

Police in Hurst are looking for the man responsible for an assault at a McDonalds on Sunday, May 26 against a young man with autism.

22-year-old Colin Newman is still recovering from two surgeries to fix a broken ankle and fractured face.

"It's heartbreaking. Colin's autistic," said his mom Kristy Newman.

Newman said her son's Aspergers diagnosis means that even though he's high functioning, he interacts differently than others.

"He still needs someone to watch over him, to guide him, so this is my worst fear. Someone not understanding him and taking it to this level," said Newman.

They said Colin had stopped in the restaurant along Pipeline Road sometime after 11 p.m. that night to grab a sandwich on his way home from work.

"I was throwing my drink away when a kid was trying to talk to me about a toy," said Colin.

Colin said he responded, which the child's father didn't like.

"He told me to move along very aggressively from what I remember. I, however, was tired. It was late. So I tried to diffuse the situation by giving him a fist bump. Well he didn't like that all," said Colin.

After some yelling, Colin said the man left with his child. A few minutes later, he was back to confront him.

"The last thing I remember after that... was waking up on the floor, this little bit of blood everywhere from what I could barely see," said Colin.

But while Colin came to, the man fled.

Police said the suspect could face assault against the disabled charge. But due to the fact he paid with cash and they haven't been able to get surveillance video from the restaurant, an arrest has been difficult.

Colin's still hopeful, not for himself, but for the safety of his community.

"This man assaulted me without any reason that I know of. And if he assaulted me with that little amount of information, he could assault anybody," said Colin.

Contact Us