Upstate NY author allegedly beat up stranger for wearing Trump 2024 hat inside Tops supermarket

An upstate New York author allegedly pummeled a stranger inside a supermarket for sporting Donald Trump swag just a few days before Election Day, authorities said.

Robert Yott, 60, is accused of confronting a supporter of the ex-president for wearing a Trump 2024 hat at Tops Friendly Markets on Friday around 10 a.m., the village of Bath police said.

Robert Yott, 60, is accused of confronting a supporter of the ex-president for wearing a Trump 2024 hat at Tops Friendly Markets on Friday around 10 a.m. Steuben County Sheriffs Office

Yott then allegedly socked the victim in the mouth and head multiple times, causing a bloody mouth and broken teeth, police said.

The village police department said the alleged assault “appears to be a random act of violence.”

Yott was arrested and booked on second-degree assault, a felony, and fourth-degree criminal mischief, Bath police said.

Yott is known in the community as a local author of a pair of military history books, the Wellsville Sun reported.

Trump puts on a campaign hat as he speaks at a campaign rally at the Calhoun Ranch on Oct. 12, 2024, in Coachella, Calif. AP
An attendee wears a hat supporting former President Donald Trump during a campaign event with Republican nominee for Senate Bernie Moreno on Nov. 1, 2024 in at Spartan Northwood Warehouse in Northwood, Ohio. Getty Images

The village of Bath has a population of roughly 5,500 people and is located in Steuben County, which has twice as many registered Republican voters than Democratic voters, according to state records.

Yott did not immediately return an email seeking comment late Sunday.

Political tensions in the US are high ahead of Election Day on Tuesday as Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris battle to be named the next president.