Jaime Tran who allegedly shot Jewish men in had anti-Semitic past

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.

Using information from witnesses and security footage, authorities identified the vehicle used in the shootings and were able to track the registration to Tran.

“We have a suspect in custody, [but] we will continue our high visibility extra patrols in all of our communities in Los Angeles throughout the week,” said Deputy Chief David J. Kowalski, commanding officer of the LAPD counterterrorism and special operations bureau.

According to the complaint, Tran had a history of making antisemitic remarks. In December 2022, Tran allegedly told classmates that Jewish people are “primitive” and encouraged them to blame revenue loss on the “Iranian Jew.”

Between August and November 2022, Tran allegedly texted a former classmate, “Someone is going to kill you, Jew,” and “I want you dead, Jew.”

Tran, homeless and living in his vehicle for a year, allegedly took responsibility for the shootings and said he targeted the men because of their traditional Jewish clothing.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper from the Simon Wiesenthal Center called on the community to remain vigilant in reporting such incidents, especially since LA has the third-largest Jewish community in the US.

“We want to encourage everyone to do exactly what they did last Shabbat but let’s also be perfectly honest, parents will be looking over their shoulders,” Cooper said. “Tomorrow we go to our services with our children. You don’t want to give bigots, racists, antisemites and terrorists a victory. Please make sure that you would tend to local synagogues. They should be filled.”

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Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the incidents go against what the city stands for.

“We are here with locked arms against all forms of hate and bigotry and discrimination,” she said. “This antisemitism goes against the values of our city and goes against our humanity. All hate does. … bigotry in all forms is hate against us all. Well, today and every day, all of us are pushing back and we will prevail. Sisterhood and brotherhood will prevail. My heart and prayers go out to the victims and to the Jewish community.”