Xavier Pabon, 30, and Samer Jayylusi, 36, were each charged with two felony counts of assault by means of force likely to cause great bodily injury, and a hate crime, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon announced on Wednesday.
The two men were arrested for their role in a May 18 attack on Jewish diners outside the Sushi Fumi restaurant at 359 N La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles. They allegedly participated in a pro-Palestinian caravan during the Israel-Hamas clashes in Gaza, and when they passed by the restaurant, they approached two men who were sitting there because they were Jewish.
Witnesses told the local CBS station that a mob of pro-Palestinians attacked the Jewish men who were dining on the sidewalk near the restaurant. A video showed a group of men get out of the car and start attacking them while yelling racial slurs.
One of the victims, who is not Jewish, told CBS that a caravan waving pro-Palestinian flags approached and the participants began throwing bottles at him and the group he was dining with. The man said he was a photographer and was meeting the group to plan a wedding. He said he had been physically attacked when he tried to defend the group, and that the attackers were using anti-Semitic profanity. He said he was pepper-sprayed by the same attackers and had to seek treatment at the hospital.
Prosecutors say LA Police is still investigating the attack on Sushi Fumi’s patrons.
