8 members of neo-Nazi group accused of assaulting 2 men in Washington state

The suspects, seven men and a woman, ages 23 to 38, walked into the bar Saturday and began harassing an African-American disc jockey before allegedly assaulting him, the Snohomish County, Washington, Sheriff's Office said Monday. All eight members of the group were white and used racial slurs during the incident, the sheriff's office said.

The two victims were 37 and 35. The DJ was transported to a nearby hospital for injuries not considered life-threatening, the sheriff's office said.

"We do not tolerate and will not ever tolerate acts of hate in Snohomish County," Sheriff Ty Trenary said in a statement. "The violent behavior directed at members of our community over the weekend simply because of their race is disgusting."

The eight were arrested on several charges, including harassment, malicious harassment and fourth-degree assault.

Washington state law defines malicious harassment as a threat or physical violence perpetrated because of "the victim's race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or mental, physical, or sensory handicap."

"The Sheriff's Office is partnering with the FBI in hopes of getting the strongest sentencing possible for these hate crimes," the sheriff said.

CNN's Pierre Meilhan contributed to this report.

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