Who is Esmeralda Upton? Texas woman arrested as racist Plano hate crime video against Indians goes viral

A 58-year-old Texas woman, Esmeralda Upton, was arrested on August 25 after she physically and verbally assaulted a group of Indian-American women outside a restaurant.

The incident came to light after one of the victims took to her Facebook handle to share a five-minute video of the incident. The video shows a clearly frustrated Upton using racial slurs before physically attacking the ladies in the parking lot of Plano's Sixty Vines eatery.

She can be heard saying that she didn't want the women there and when she sees another woman recording the incident, she assaults her before mumbling "curry a** b*****s."

Mid-way through the confrontation, one of the four women in the parking lot called the cops and explained the incident to them. To this, Upton, who at that point had walked away from them, returned and hit the caller. The 58-year-old also admonished the woman for calling her a "white woman" instead of a Mexican.

Esmeralda Upton was asked why she walked up to the group when no one had called her, she exclaimed:

“I hate you f*****g Indians…You come to our country and want everything free. I am Mexican-American. I was born here. Were you born here? Everywhere I go, you f*****g Indians are there.”

Esmeralda Upton even went on to ask one of the women:

"If life is so great in India, why are you f*****g here?"

She was arrested a day after the incident.

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What we know about Esmeralda Upton

Esmeralda Upton, a resident of Plano, Texas, has lived in other cities in Texas, including Dallas, Denton and Midland. The 58-year-old also lived in Indianapolis, Indiana, at one point.

She works as a realtor at the California Federal Bank and is also a parishioner at the city's Prince of Peace Catholic Church. The Texas native is the widow of Thomas Paul Upton and has two sons whose names have not been revealed.

Following the lengthy confrontation, police arrived at the scene and asked the victims to step aside as they spoke to Upton. Plano authorities convicted the woman the next day on the basis of witness statements. She was charged with misdemeanor assault and terroristic threats, and her bond is set at $10,000.

In the video, which has since been shared multiple times, it can be seen that Upton quickly changed her aggressive attitude after seeing the woman lodge a 911 complaint. In an apologetic tone, she said:

"You know what. You are right. Ma’am, I am sorry. I am sorry. You know what, peace. Ok, f**k you! Peace. I overstepped my bounds."

Later, when no one interacted with her, she went on to bodyshame the women and called them "well over two hundred pounds."

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Cops are currently investigating the case and have not commented on it.

Rani Banerjee, who originally posted the video, gave an update in her video caption. They have been advised not to discuss the incident any further before any conclusion is reached.