FORT WAYNE, Ind. — A Fort Wayne business owner is recovering after being attacked inside his metaphysical store in what he believes was a hate-motivated assault targeting his spiritual practice.
Fae’s Cabinet Logo
Travis Tribolet-Ward, owner of Fae’s Cabinet, said the incident occurred on Friday, September 6, 2025, in the early evening, around 5:30 p.m. The man immediately gave Tribolet-Ward an uneasy feeling and ultimately approached him while he was behind the shop counter.
“I was in our shop when a gentleman entered,” Tribolet-Ward told The Wild Hunt. “He asked if I was a Satanist. I said no, I was a practicing Witch.”
The man lingered in the shop until other customers had left, continuing to browse the shelves before circling behind the counter. Roughly 15 minutes after his arrival, the situation turned violent.
According to Tribolet-Ward, the man launched into a brutal assault. “He stomped on my back for about five minutes,” Tribolet-Ward said. “He threw me on the floor twice—actually broke one of our birdcages—and then he was kneeing me in the face at that point.”
Throughout the attack, the assailant shouted anti-Witch slurs, including “Kill all the witches,” and “All witches must die.”
Tribolet-Ward said he attempted to defend himself: “I was able to get up and tried to spray bleach in his face, but he hit the bottle out of my hand.”
The man, described as wearing a fluorescent yellow sweatshirt and red pants, eventually forced Tribolet-Ward outside the shop. “I was able to get outside, and a passerby helped separate us,” Tribolet-Ward said. “I called 911, and he eventually left before the police arrived.”
Editorial Note: The video contains disturbing violence.
Fae’s cabinet wrote “Trigger warning!!! I was attacked in the shop today. I will post a photo in the comments. ”
The Fort Wayne Police Department confirmed it responded to a battery call at Fae’s Cabinet around 6:15 p.m. on Friday. By the time officers arrived, the attacker had fled. Tribolet-Ward provided police with a license plate number and has indicated his intent to press charges. The suspect has since been identified, but as of publication time, has not yet been apprehended.
Tribolet-Ward announced that the local court granted a protective order this morning. The order was listed immediately in the Protection Order Registry, making local, state, and national law enforcement agencies aware of the restraint.
Ward suffered bruising, back pain, and a concussion in the assault. As of Monday evening, Tribolet-Ward told The Wild Hunt that he was still dealing with the physical effects of the assault. He admitted that he also has some emotional damage as well as physical wounds. But he is recovering.
“It’s really scary because I feel like it’s becoming so normal anymore, that people are just used to seeing things like this,” Tribolet-Ward said. “From what he was saying, it sounded like a hate crime to me. I don’t think it was random. I think he came here for that purpose.”
He added that the violence was not just a physical ordeal, but an attack on his identity and safety. “We have to bring awareness to it, and we have to realize it’s not okay,” he said.
Ward also expressed gratitude for the support he has received from customers, neighbors, and the wider community in the days since the incident. “The outpouring of love has been incredible,” he said. “It helps me remember that while one person may bring hate, so many others bring kindness.”
Federal data show thousands of hate-crime incidents are reported annually in the United States. The Department of Justice says participating agencies reported 11,679 hate-crime incidents in 2024 and 11,862 in 2023. Religion is a common motive category tracked by the FBI, alongside race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, and disability.
The FBI’s system does not break out a specific “Pagan” or similar category. Any such incident would likely be aggregated under “other/unspecified religion.”
While the details of the Fort Wayne assault remain under investigation, other incidents in recent years have affected occult- or Pagan-adjacent sites and communities. Earlier this year, on February 15, a vendor selling Pagan or Witchcraft supplies was confronted and harassed by members of Stillwater Christian Fellowship in Pickens, South Carolina. According to The Wild Hunt, church members condemned the vendor and those supporting them to hell, citing Exodus 22:18 (“Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live”) as justification.
In March 2025, a group of evangelical Christians targeted two metaphysical shops in Orlando. No violence was reported, but the ordeal was a harrowing reminder of these random aggressions.
In July 2024, a Portland, Oregon, a Pagan bookstore reported an attack investigated as arson.
In April 2024, an explosive device was thrown at the Satanic Temple’s headquarters in Salem, Massachusetts (it did not detonate), an act the organization called an attempted terrorist attack; police previously investigated a 2022 arson at the same site. The Polk County Pagan Market in Texas and a Pagan market in Arkansas have also faced repeated harassment.
Outside of markets, events like WitchsFest USA in New York City have experienced growing levels of Christian protest. One organizer described new groups as being “collectively at war with us,” a sign of increasing aggression at publicly held Pagan events.
Tribolet-Ward offered a warning to other small business owners and practitioners: “Keep your guard up. If you have an uneasy feeling, trust your gut.”
Despite the trauma, Tribolet-Ward said he does not want fear to define his work or silence his practice. My biggest comment for our community is to be aware of your surroundings and always be safe, and “stay true to yourself.”
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