CA - Angry patient Mohammed Abdulkareem murders dentist and wounds 2 others - March 1, 2024

[Clearsky]

Suspect in fatal dentist office shooting is a 'disgruntled' former patient, police say

One person died and two were wounded when gunfire erupted inside offices in El Cajon, California.

www.nbcnews.com

Licensed dentist Benjamin Ariel Harouni, 28, "sustained apparent gunshot injuries to the torso" and was pronounced dead at the scene, the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office said.

 

[airportwoman]

I wonder if the shooter wanted pain meds, and the dentist wouldn't give them to him.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

The brother of a San Diego-area Jewish dentist killed at his office on Thursday says Benjamin Harouni was “murdered in cold blood” in an act of hate and pledged to set up a nonprofit to combat hatred in his memory.

Local police have not declared the incident a hate crime, saying that the motive for the shooting remains under investigation and noting that the alleged murderer appears to have been “a disgruntled former customer” of Harouni’s dental practice.

But Jake Harouni’s Instagram post is emblematic of a coalescing discourse surrounding his brother’s death: Jews and pro-Israel activists say the killing, allegedly at the hands of 29-year-old Mohammed Abdulkareem, was likely an act of antisemitism amid the heated atmosphere surrounding the Israel-Hamas war.

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis of the crisis each day.
“Those saying this was not a hate crime need to rethink what they define as hate,” Jake Harouni wrote in his post. He added, “As a Persian-Jewish American, I have always felt so scared and vulnerable during these times of hatred. Now that it is at my front door, it feels much more real and urgent

Calls mount to investigate antisemitism in killing of San Diego Jewish dentist Benjamin Harouni

“Those saying this was not a hate crime need to rethink what they define as hate,” the victim’s brother wrote on Instagram.

forward.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Dr. Benjamin Ariel Harouni, 28, suffered multiple gunshot wounds when Abdulkareem allegedly “burst into” the Smile Plus Dentistry office in El Cajon at abut 4:15 p.m. on Feb. 29 and fired at least 23 shots with a semiautomatic handgun, authorities said. Harouni died at the scene.

Dr. Benjamin Ariel Harouni, 28, was killed at his San Diego dental practice Feb. 29 by a "disgruntled" former patient, authorities said.

Two other employees were also injured in the shooting, authorities said, but were in stable condition.

Office manager George Issaian was shot five times, his wife, Abby Issaian, told NBC 7. She said Abdulkareem began to “terrorize” her husband’s office in 2022, repeatedly visiting to complain about the dental treatments he received from Harouni.

‘Disgruntled’ Patient Charged With Killing Dentist, Injuring 2 Employees

Mohammed Abdulkareem, 29, is accused of firing at least 23 shots in a San Diego dental practice, killing Dr. Benjamin Harouni.

www.huffpost.com

 

[Cryptic]

“Those saying this was not a hate crime need to rethink what they define as hate,” Jake Harouni wrote in his post.

Sometimes trying to establish a hate crime is tantamount to reading the mind of the perpetrator. And... if the perpetrator kept his thoughts to himself and not on social media, they can be near impossible to read.

There is also the possibility of mixed motives where the main motive might have been one thing, but the victim's race pushed the perpertrator into murder.

For example, in my city there was a series of robberies targeting a certain ethnic group that featured scouting for the targeted group, and over kill violence- even when there was no resistance. The violence then escalated to home invasion robbery / murder.

Hate crime was suspected, but the perpetrators did not publicize their thoughts. So, not enough evidence for a hate crime.

Likewise, another case had the murder of a tow truck driver. The perpetrator had received information about the victim's race. He lived in a house with long standing racist imagery. The targeted group said they felt intimidated to pass by the house.

But.... nobody could testify that the perpetrator had placed the racist imagery, nor had anybody seen the perpetrator take part in racial intimidation around the house. So, not enough evidence of a hate crime.