A man who allegedly shot and wounded two Jewish men as they left synagogues in Los Angeles last month pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal hate crimes, authorities said.
The shootings Feb. 15 and Feb. 16 brought fear into LA's Jewish community after officials said the victims were targeted because they wore clothing that identified their faith, including black coats and head coverings. Both survived the violence.
Jaime Tran, 28, is charged with two counts of hate crimes and two counts of using, carrying and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
He entered his not-guilty plea Thursday in federal court. His attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tran told law enforcement that he looked online for a “kosher market” and decided to shoot someone nearby, according at an affidavit filed by the FBI. He also admitted to shooting someone the previous day, the affidavit said.
Tran has “history of antisemitic and threatening conduct,” an FBI affidavit said, citing a review of emails, text messages and unspecified reports.
In 2022, he emailed former classmates using insulting language about Jewish people, and he threatened a Jewish former classmate, repeatedly sending them messages like “Someone is going to kill you, Jew” and “I want you dead, Jew,” according to the affidavit.
