ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A man accused of using homophobic slurs while attacking two elderly men and punching a woman out jogging will be held behind bars. Brian Eisenbeis is facing battery and tampering with evidence charges.
The state said they are pursuing hate crime charges. “The incident is quite violent in nature. It’s also a hate crime, the state would submit. It’s gonna proceed forward with the enhancement as well,” said Prosecutor Henry De La Garza. They filed for pretrial detention based on the violent nature of the crime.
According to the criminal complaint, a woman was jogging near Silver and 12th Street on April 10. She saw a speeding truck drive through a stop sign and waited at the intersection for it to pass. The driver, later identified as Eisenbeis, stopped and motioned for her to cross. When she didn’t, investigators said he got out of his truck and punched her in the face.
About 40 minutes later, two 80-year-old men were going into a theft store near Central and 14th Street when Eisenbeis, driving in his truck, is accused of yelling homophobic slurs at them and threatening to kill them. “He gets out of his vehicle then and attacks both elderly men. Defendant strikes HF, who is seated behind me, breaking his leg and also breaking his lower jaw,” said De La Garza. The other man also needed medical attention.
Police found the truck the following week and discovered Eisenbeis tried to change it to avoid being caught. He was arrested earlier this month in St. Louis where he is also facing numerous charges for assault and resisting arrest.
Eisenbeis’s lawyer said their client has not been convicted of any violent crime and asked that he be allowed out of jail until trial. Judge Cindy Leos ordered him to remain behind bars saying Eisebneis fleeing to Missouri and picking up new charges shows he could be a danger to the community if released.
Eisenbeis was recently connected with another battery from 2022. According to the criminal complaint, he attacked a man on Central, smashed his belongings, and took off in the same truck from the April attack.
