Man found insane at time of attack on 2 men near synagogue

A Seattle man who was accused of trying to run over two men near a synagogue in a Jewish neighborhood in the Wilshire area nearly four years ago has been found to have been insane at the time of the crime.

In a non-jury trial Thursday, Superior Court Judge Drew Edwards found Mohamed Abdi Mohamed, 36,  guilty of two counts of assault with a deadly weapon -- a vehicle -- along with a hate crime allegation, but acquitted him of two counts of attempted murder by reason of insanity, according to Deputy District Attorney Richard Ceballos.

Then Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore said shortly before the attack that the victims had just left a synagogue in the 300 block of La Brea Avenue and were walking toward Oakwood Avenue as Mohamed was "yelling out hateful remarks" about Jewish heritage and people of faith.

"They watch him as he then turns his vehicle directly at them," the police chief said. The two men escaped injury, but both said they feared for their safety and identified Mohamed as the man who had driven a vehicle toward them, Los Angeles Police Department Detective Easley De Larkin testified at an April 2019 hearing at which Mohamed was ordered to stand trial.

Mohamed will be transferred to the California Department of Mental Health for placement, the prosecutor said.