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A 34-year-old man is being held at the University of New Mexico Mental Health Center after a reported attack of three East Indian UNM students.

The man, who was not identified because authorities said he has not been charged, is on a 72-hour mental health hold that began Wednesday night.

Bhavana Upadhyaya, president of the India Student Association, said a large group of students was attacked Wednesday about 6:15 p.m. Three students in the group chased the assailant and called police.

Fifteen students have described similar attacks in the past few months by a man who has tried to sneak up and kick them from behind.

Those attacks were likely committed by the same man, said Karen Wentworth, a UNM spokeswoman.

"A couple of students identified him as the attacker, so everybody's feeling relatively confident," Wentworth said.

Wentworth said authorities were in the process Thursday of obtaining an arrest warrant.

Upadhyaya said the contingent of more than 100 East Indian students at UNM is happy to see the man caught.

"We are quite relieved, but we are also concerned," she said. "He has confessed to having a grudge against Indians. We would like to see the district attorney press charges as a hate crime."

Still, if the man is mentally ill, Upadhyaya said she hopes he gets the treatment he needs.

"We want him to get treatment, but we also don't want him back where he can attack anyone else," Upadhyaya said.