SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego County Sheriff's Department is investigating a possible hate crime following a party Saturday night in the East County.

10News anchor, Hal Clement explains what happened to a young African-American man and his friends over the weekend and why the young man's mother is so frustrated.

The party was at a home in Deerhorn Valley, Northeast of Jamul.

Among the people there were several young African-American students from Monte Vista High School.

It was a large party, they said, and one that turned ugly with racism and violence.

Chris Jones,18, said he and his friends heard racial slurs, including the “N” word.

Then, he said, he was hit and dragged into a bathroom by five white men.

“They’re just all punching me while the person behind me is biting my back. They're all saying racial slurs,” Jones recalled.

He got away with his friends and jumped in his car but something crashed through the windshield. Then, he crashed into a parked car.

10News went along with his mother, Denise Brown, to see the car for the first time since then. Some damage was evident from the crash, but the windows were also smashed in. There were also footprints where the car appeared to have been kicked.

“These are savages and they haven’t arrested anybody. This is worse than I thought,” Jones’ mother said.

“Why would you do this to a car? But, the thing is, what they were trying to do to the people in it,” Denise Jones said.

Her son has several stitches, bumps and bruises, and more.

“I didn’t think this kind of racism still existed around today, but this proved me wrong,” Jones said.

His friends are still shaken as well.

“Scared for my life. I never been that scared for my life. I thought I was going to die,” said Jones’ friend, Aaron Burns.

As Denise Brown looked at her sons belongings, frustration built.

“This is a modern day lynching,” she said.

The Sheriff's Department tells 10News there are more than 60 witnesses to interview and “..it will take time.”

“I just believe if my son had blonde hair and blue eyes, people would be arrested,” Denis Jones said.

But the Sheriff's Department said, with all the witnesses and conflicting stories, it will take a while. After Chris Jones car crashed, he and his friends were able to run away and then get a ride from another friend, who took Jones to the hospital.

He said people at the party had been drinking, but he had not.