iStock/Fedorovekb(SUNNYVALE, Calif ) — A military veteran, who is facing multiple state charges for attempting to kill eight people he thought were of Muslim faith, may get hit with federal hate crime charges, sources told ABC News on Saturday night.
Isaiah Joel Peoples was arrested for slamming his car on April 23 into a crowd of pedestrians, who were crossing the street in Sunnyvale, California. Peoples allegedly drove into the crosswalk without attempting to yield or slow down, according to a spokesman from the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety.
Eight people, ages ranging from 9 to 52, were ran over because of their race and Peoples’ belief that they were Muslim, wrote the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety on their Twitter account on Friday.
Late yesterday afternoon, DPS obtained evidence regarding the motive behind Peoples’ criminal act. He targeted the victims based on their race and his belief that they were of the Muslim Faith. We will be providing support to our diverse communities.
— Sunnyvale DPS (@SunnyvaleDPS) April 26, 2019
Sources confirmed with ABC News that the FBI in San Francisco have opened a federal hate crime investigation.
The 34-year-old was charged in Santa Clara County, California, Superior Court with eight counts of attempted murder and other charges.
Peoples, 34, is an Iraq war veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, his mother Leevell Peoples told ABC News.
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