Riverside Ex-Con Pleads Guilty to Hate and Gun Crimes for Synagogue Shooting

RIVERSIDE EX-CON PLEADS GUILTY TO HATE AND GUN CRIMES FOR SYNAGOGUE SHOOTING

LOS ANGELES – A former Riverside resident who last year shot and wounded two Jewish men as they left religious services in the Pico-Robertson area of Los Angeles has agreed to plead guilty to hate crimes and firearms offenses, the Justice Department announced today.

Jaime Tran, 29, has agreed to plead guilty to all charges against him: two counts of hate crimes with intent to kill and two counts of using, carrying, and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

Tran is expected to plead guilty to the felony charges before United States District Judge George H. Wu in the coming weeks. Upon entering his guilty plea, Tran will face a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison for each hate crime count, and a maximum of life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for each firearm count.

According to his plea agreement, Tran developed and espoused antisemitic beliefs and made violent threats toward Jewish people. In 2018, Tran left dental school after making hate-filled statements about other students whom he perceived to be Jewish. From August 2022 to December 2022, Tran’s antisemitic statements escalated and included increasingly violent language, including against a former classmate whom he repeatedly called and texted with messages such as “I want you dead, Jew,” “Someone is going to kill you, Jew,” and “Burn in an oven chamber.”

In January 2023, Tran was prohibited from purchasing firearms due to previous mental health holds. However, he asked a third party to buy two firearms for him in Phoenix, Arizona. On the morning of February 15, 2023, Tran used the internet to research locations with a “kosher market,” and planned to shoot someone near a kosher market because he believed there would be Jewish people in the area.

Tran drove to Pico-Robertson and shot a Jewish victim wearing a yarmulke as he was leaving religious services at a synagogue. Tran, believing the victim was Jewish, shot him at close range in the back, intending to kill him. Tran then fled the scene in his car. The next morning, February 16, 2023, Tran returned to the Pico-Robertson area and shot another Jewish victim, also leaving religious services, at close range in the back.

“This defendant sought to murder two men simply because they were Jewish,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Rather than allow these horrific crimes to divide us, however, our community came together and swiftly brought the perpetrator to justice. Hate and intolerance have no place in America. We will remain firm in our approach of using all the tools at our disposal to aggressively prosecute acts of hate.”

Tran’s sentence under the plea agreement is expected to be between 35 years and 40 years in federal prison. This case is a stark reminder of the devastating consequences of hate crimes and the importance of holding perpetrators accountable.

The Los Angeles Police Department and the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office worked closely together to apprehend Tran and bring him to justice. “I’m thankful for the hard work our investigators and prosecutors have put into this case,” said Los Angeles Police Chief Dominic Choi. “Hate crimes tear at the fabric of our communities and safety. The Los Angeles Police Department is stronger through our federal partnerships, better serving the people of Los Angeles.”

“The defendant’s hatred led him to plan the murder of two innocent victims simply because he believed they were practicing their Jewish faith,” said Krysti Hawkins, the Acting Assistant Director of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “I’m relieved that the hard work by investigators and prosecutors led to Tran’s admission to these abhorrent crimes, and hope that members of the Jewish community take some solace in knowing that he will not be in the position to target their fellow members.”