A 28-year-old man has been charged with federal hate crimes in connection with the shootings of two Jewish worshipers outside Los Angels synagogues this week. The suspect, identified as LA resident Jaime Tran, shot two Jewish men in separate instances on Wednesday and Thursday.
“The shootings occurred within 24 hours on Wednesday and Thursday mornings as the victims left different synagogues within two blocks of each other,” the ABC News reported. “The first victim was shot in the lower back, while the second was shot in the upper arm.” Both victims survived the shooting.
According to the police, the shooter identified the Jewish victims by their clothing. The shooter has a “history of antisemitic and threatening conduct,” an FBI affidavit said.
The New York Post covered the details of the investigation:
The man who allegedly shot two Orthodox Jewish men in separate incidents in Los Angeles this week had a history of making anti-Semitic threats and told former classmates he wanted to kill them.Jaime Tran, 28, has been charged with federal hate crimes and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison for the attacks, US Attorney Martin Estrada said during a press conference in Los Angeles on Friday.“Over the past few days, our community has experienced two horrific acts,” Estrada said. “An individually motivated by antisemitism and hatred for people in the Jewish community committed to tremendously horrible acts, targeting individuals because of their Jewish faith.“Targeting two victims as they departed from religious services at two different synagogues in the Beverlywood neighborhood. This type of criminal conduct is completely unacceptable.”Officials said the first incident took place before 9:45 a.m. Wednesday when Tran allegedly drove up in his Honda Civic and shot a 47-year-old man as he was getting into his car, which was parked across from a synagogue at the 1400 block of Shenandoah Street.The man, wearing a traditional yarmulke and black jacket, was shot in the right side of his back, according to the federal criminal complaint that was unsealed Friday.The second attack occurred around 8:30 a.m. Thursday at the intersection of Pickford and Bedford streets, which is about two blocks away from the first crime scene.In that incident, Tran was also in his vehicle when he shot an Orthodox Jewish man in his 70s as the man was leaving a different synagogue. The second victim also was wearing a yarmulke, according to the criminal complaint.Both men survived the shootings, authorities said. Tran was arrested in the Palm Springs area after Cathedral City Police responded to reports of shots fired, according to the complaint. Cops also confiscated an AK-style firearm and a .380-caliber handgun in Tran’s vehicle.
An overwhelming majority of hate crimes in LA County are committed against the Jewish community. The ABC News reported:
In 2021, nearly 75% of religious-based hate crimes reported in Los Angeles County targeted the Jewish community, according to a report from the county’s Commission on Human Relations.”The Jewish community feels under siege,” Jeffrey Abrams, the regional director of the Anti-Defamation League in Los Angeles, said during the briefing. “We stand here today in solidarity and gratitude and thanks for our law enforcement partners. We ask that everyone, Jewish and non-Jewish alike, stand up against this growing antisemitism.”
The shootings in LA come just weeks after a similar attack in Jerusalem. On 27 January, an Arab terrorist gunned down seven Jewish worshipers and wounded 10 others as they were leaving an East Jerusalem synagogue. The shooting was followed by a series of Palestinian terror attacks against Israeli civilians.
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