Black Friday Sale! 50% Off All Access

Caught on Tape: Two TikTokers Were Reviewing In-N-Out Burger When a Man Harassed Them With Homophobic and Racist Slurs The tense incident was captured on Christmas Eve and has been viewed millions of times. Police arrested a suspect.

By Jonathan Small

Entrepreneur+ Black Friday Sale

Our biggest sale — Get unlimited access to Entrepreneur.com at an unbeatable price. Use code SAVE50 at checkout.*

Claim Offer

*Offer only available to new subscribers

Two Asian-Amercian customers at an In-N-Out Burger in San Ramon, California, were filming a TikTok video when a man verbally abused them with homophobic and racist language. The video, posted on Christmas, has since gone viral and led police to arrest suspect Jordan Douglas Krah on hate crime charges.

@arinekim My friend and i were filming his reaction to my in-n-out order when this happened… #arinekim ♬ original sound - arine kim

In the video, Arine Kim and Elliot Ha are seated inside an In-N-Out Burger, filming Ha's reaction to Kim's "light-well fries." Off camera, a man approaches and asks them if they're filming themselves eating, then he calls them "weird homosexuals."

Kim and Ha are taken aback by the comment but continue their review when the man returns to ask about their ethnicity. When Ha tells him he's Korean, the man says, "You're Kim Jong Un's boyfriend, huh?"

Not quite sure how to react, Ha plays along as the man's questioning about his sexual orientation starts to become more aggressive. Kim notices that the situation is escalating and tells Ha to stop engaging and not react. The conversation's tenor suddenly changes — Ha apologizes, and the man off-camera begins to threaten him.

"Normally, I could spit in your face," he says. Then he makes a derogatory remark about Filipinos.

The man returns a few minutes later, harassing them with more homophobic comments before threatening to meet Ha outside. Kim asks nervously, "Do you think he's going to pull a gun on us?"

Related: Woman Throws Computer Monitor at Gate Agent After Missing Flight in Chaotic Footage

Police arrest

Kim posted the disturbing video on Christmas day and immediately received an outpouring of support from TikTok users shocked by the abhorrent hate language used. Some Venmoed money saying the next meal was on them.

Kim's TikTok caught the attention of Chief Denton Carlson of the San Ramone police department, who contacted Kim via Twitter. The next day the police arrested a suspect identified as Jordan Douglas Krah of Denver, Colorado.

Krah was later released, but in an update video on TikTok, Kim says she has pressed hate crime charges.

The incident left many wondering what happened after Kim shut off the camera. So Kim made another video a few days later, explaining that Krah waited outside the restaurant for about 10 minutes, glaring at them through the window.

"We just stayed in our seats and didn't move because we were scared if we did move, he would use that as an invitation to harass us more," she said.

She also revealed that she'd been contacted via Instagram by a Filipino family, who claimed that Krah spit and hurled racist comments at them in nearby Danville.

Kim said she and Ha didn't initially go to the police because Krah didn't physically harm them. "I honestly thought our experiences were going to be dismissed," she explained. "We didn't think anyone would care."

But the reaction on TikTok and from law enforcement has been overwhelmingly supportive. Kim said she was grateful to have the platform to shed light on hate crimes and "the atrocities that minorities have to go through on a daily basis."

According to a report published by Stop AAPI Hate, the Asian American community reported more than 10,000 hate incidents in 2020 and 2021, nearly half occurred in public places.

"I hope my situation inspires others to talk about their own experiences," Kim said.

Jonathan Small

Entrepreneur Staff

Founder, Strike Fire Productions

Jonathan Small is a bestselling author, journalist, producer, and podcast host. For 25 years, he has worked as a sought-after storyteller for top media companies such as The New York Times, Hearst, Entrepreneur, and Condé Nast. He has held executive roles at Glamour, Fitness, and Entrepreneur and regularly contributes to The New York Times, TV Guide, Cosmo, Details, Maxim, and Good Housekeeping. He is the former “Jake” advice columnist for Glamour magazine and the “Guy Guru” at Cosmo.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Science & Technology

I've Spent 20 Years Studying Focus. Here's How I Use AI to Multiply My Time and Save 21 Weeks of Work a Year

AI is supposed to save time, but 77% of employees say it often costs more time due to all the editing it requires. Instead of helping, it can become a distraction. But don't worry — there's a better way.

Business News

The Two Richest People in the World Are Fighting on Social Media Again

Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk had a new, contentious exchange on X.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Business News

Barbara Corcoran Says This Is the Interest Rate Magic Number That Will Make the Market 'Go Ballistic'

Corcoran said she praying for lower interest rates and people are "tired of waiting."

Starting a Business

Why Are So Many Course Creators Struggling if It's 'Such an Easy Business'? Here's the Truth Behind the $800 Billion Industry

Creating an online course is so easy — at least, that's what many "gurus" would like you to believe. There's a lot of potential in the $800 billion industry, but here's why so many course creators are struggling.

Money & Finance

Why Donald Trump's Business-First Policies Trump Harris' Consumer-Centric Approach

President Donald Trump's pro-business agenda is packed with policy moves encouraging investment to drive economic growth. The next Congress has a unique opportunity to support entrepreneurship and innovation, improving U.S. competitiveness with the rest of the world.