Washington ( CNN ) -- Five people , including three police officers , have been indicted on charges related to the beating death of a Latino man in rural Pennsylvania in July 2008 , the Justice Department said Tuesday . Two indictments charge the five with federal hate crimes , obstruction of justice and conspiracy in what authorities are calling a racially motivated attack . The indictments come almost six months after a Schuylkill County jury acquitted two teens of aggravated assault and one of murder in the death of Luis Ramirez . The undocumented Mexican immigrant was beaten into a coma during a street brawl involving the teens and their friends on a residential street in Shenandoah . The incident divided the small , rural mining town along racial lines and became a flash point for racial tensions nationwide . After the verdict , Pennsylvania Gov . Ed Rendell denounced the attack as racially motivated and called on the Justice Department to intervene . A federal grand jury handed up the indictments last week , and they were unsealed Tuesday . The two young men , Derrick Donchak and Brandon Piekarsky , are accused of a hate crime for beating Ramirez while shouting racial epithets at him , according to the department . If convicted of hate crime charges , Donchak and Piekarsky face a maximum penalty of life in prison . Donchak also faces a maximum of 20 years in prison if convicted of obstruction , and an additional five years on the charge of conspiring to obstruct justice . Donchak also faces three counts of conspiring to obstruct justice and related offences . He is accused of attempting to orchestrate a coverup with members of the Shenandoah Police Department , the Justice Department said . Shenandoah Police Chief Matthew Nestor and Lt. William Moyer and Officer Jason Hayes are charged with conspiring to obstruct justice in the Ramirez investigation . Moyer faces additional charges of witness and evidence tampering and making false statements to the FBI . Nestor , Moyer and Hayes intentionally failed to `` memorialize or record '' statements made by Piekarsky about the incident , and `` wrote false and misleading official reports '' that `` intentionally omitted information about the true nature of the assault and the investigation , '' the indictment said . Nestor , Moyer and Hayes each face up to 20 years in prison on each of the obstruction charges if convicted , authorities said , along with an additional five years on the charges of conspiring to obstruct justice . Moyer faces an additional five years if convicted of making false statements to the FBI . At the time of Ramirez 's death , Hayes was dating Piekarsky 's mother and Moyer 's son was a high school freshman who played football with the youths involved in the attack , according to the indictment . State prosecutors alleged that a group of teens including Donchak and Piekarsky , then 19 and 17 , baited Ramirez into a confrontation after a night of drinking . Donchak and Piekarsky were walking home from a local festival when they encountered Ramirez and attacked him , `` striking and kicking him while members of the group yelled racial slurs at him , '' the Justice Department said . Prosecutors alleged Piekarsky delivered a fatal kick to Ramirez 's head after Ramirez was knocked to the ground . A medical examiner ruled Ramirez died from blunt-force trauma to the head . In June , an all-white Pennsylvania jury acquitted Piekarsky of third-degree murder and convicted him and Donchak of misdemeanor simple assault . The two were also found not guilty of aggravated assault , ethnic intimidation and hindering apprehension . Donchak was convicted of corrupting minors for providing the alcohol to his friends before the fight . The two were sentenced to up to 23 months in the county jail . After the verdict , Rendell sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder recommending the Justice Department pursue civil rights charges . `` The evidence suggests that Mr. Ramirez was targeted , beaten and killed because he was Mexican , '' Rendell wrote . `` Such lawlessness and violence hurts not only the victim of the attack , but also our towns and communities that are torn apart by such bigotry and intolerance . '' Gladys Limon , an attorney representing Crystal Dillman , Ramirez 's fiancee , said Dillman welcomes the indictments , but remains fearful for her safety . Dillman has moved to an undisclosed location outside Shenandoah . Her truck was vandalized , and some people have yelled racial epithets at her on the streets , the attorney said . `` She is overwhelmed and is feeling a range of emotions , '' Limon said . `` His family has suffered a great deal in the past year . '' It has been particularly hard for Ramirez 's family as the holidays approach , she said . `` The children miss their father . Crystal misses having him around for the holidays , '' Limon said . `` Crystal says this is a gift from God , that this will bring justice to Luis . '' A petition calling for federal charges in the case garnered 50,000 signatures , Limon said . A hearing in the case was scheduled for Tuesday afternoon in federal court in Wilkes-Barre , Pennsylvania . `` The FBI wants to hear from anyone who may have information regarding alleged civil rights violations or public corruption in Schuylkill County , '' the Justice Department said Tuesday . Those with information can contact the Allentown , Pennsylvania , FBI office . CNN 's Emanuella Grinberg , Rose Arce and Jacinth Planer contributed to this report .
FBI : FBI suspects victim 's fiancee calls it a ` ` gift from God '' that ` ` will bring justice '' These include hate crime , obstruction , conspiracy , misconduct , extortion charges . 2 people charged with hate crime for beating man in 2008 while shouting racial epithets . The Department alleges ` ` scheme to obstruct the investigation of the fatal assault ''