A 32-year-old man was arrested over the weekend for allegedly attempting to run over two Jewish men in Los Angles.
The man, reportedly identified as Mohamed Mohamed Abdi, can be seen on security footage making a sudden U-turn before attempting to run over two Jewish men, ages 37 and 57, leaving Bais Yehuda Shul at La Brea Avenue and Oakwood Avenue; the victims say that Mohammed put the car in reverse to strike them.
Video also shows Abdi driving through a stop sign and then striking another car, where he was arrested and taken into custody. No one was injured.
One of the victims said Abdi was shouting “F***ing Jews!” before attempting to run them over.
“Why he chose us?” one of the victims told CBS Los Angeles. “Probably because of the yarmulkes on our heads.”
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) said in a Monday press conference that the incident has been classified as a hate crime and they found a knife in Abdis car; they also found no evidence that he was inebriated. The police believe that he acted alone.
City Councilman Paul Koretz said during the press conference that he was thankful for law enforcement’s prompt response to the matter.
“This type of hate and violence will not stand, ” Koretz said. “My colleagues and I will do everything in our power to make sure that our communities are protected and secure. We will continue to fight anti-Semitism and bigotry and we continue to shine light on the darkness of hate.”
Ivan Wolkind, chief operating and financial officer of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, told the Journal in a phone interview that “this is our new normal” and urged Jewish community members to take precautionary measures.
“When you leave a place of worship, when you leave a school, when you’re in public, just be conscious of congregating in groups in areas by a street that could be vulnerable to this kind of attack,” Wolkind said.
Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Los Angeles Regional Director Amanda Susskind said in a statement, “We are appalled by the allegations of this potentially-deadly assault targeting Jews, particularly in the aftermath of the shooting at Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh.”
“According to the FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics Act report, there was a 17 percent rise in hate crimes in 2017, including a 37 percent increase in anti-Semitic hate crimes against Jews. ADL’s internal audit, which includes anti-Semitic hate crimes and incidents, paints an even starker image with a 57 percent increase in the same period,” Susskind added. “We applaud LAPD Chief Michel Moore and LA County District Attorney Jackie Lacey for their prompt investigation and hate crime charges.”
Abdi was originally born in Somalia but is currently a United States citizen who had been living in Seattle before coming to Los Angeles about a week prior to the incident. It is not known why Abdi decided to come to Los Angeles.
He is currently being held on $55,000 bail.
This article has been updated.
