MAN CHARGED WITH HATE CRIMES FOR HARASSING AND ASSAULTING TWO MUSLIM WOMEN IN IRVINE

Case # 17HF0992

Date: July 27, 2017

MAN CHARGED WITH HATE CRIMES FOR HARASSING AND ASSAULTING TWO MUSLIM WOMEN IN IRVINE

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was charged with hate crimes for harassing and assaulting two Muslim women in Irvine.

Defendant Charges Maximum Sentence Court Date
Brandon Ricardo Pascual, 35, Irvine Charged on July 26, 2017, with the following felony counts:

  • (2) Assault – Hate Crime with ability to cause injury
Three years in state prison Arraignment

Date: TBD

Circumstances of the Case

  • On March 1, 2017, Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 were walking toward their car in an Irvine shopping center parking lot. Jane Doe 1 was wearing a religious head scarf.
  • Pascual is accused of driving up to the victims and yelling an anti-Muslim expletive before driving away.
  • The defendant is accused of driving again toward Jane Doe 1 and Jane 2, then stopping his car behind their vehicle momentarily, which prevented them from leaving.
  • The victims drove out of the parking lot a few minutes later and stopped at a red light down the street from the shopping center.
  • At the light, Pascual is accused of driving up to the victims’ vehicle and throwing coins at them, striking the victims and their car.
  • The victims reported the assault to the Irvine Police Department (IPD), who investigated this case and identified the defendant through surveillance footage and a partial license plate from the victims.
  • Pascual was arrested yesterday by IPD.

Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Jess Rodriguez, Special Prosecutions Unit