The demise of a 69-year-old Jewish man at counter pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian demonstrations Thursday in Thousand Oaks has been dominated a murder, authorities introduced.
Deputies with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Workplace acquired a number of calls at round 3:20 p.m. a few battery on the intersection of Westlake and Thousand Oaks boulevards the place the demonstrations have been going down.
On the scene, authorities situated the sufferer, recognized as Paul Kessler, affected by a head damage. He was taken to a close-by hospital the place he succumbed to his accidents.
“Witness accounts indicated that Kessler was concerned in a bodily altercation with counter-protester(s),” a VCSO information launch said. “Throughout the altercation, Kessler fell backwards and struck his head on the bottom.”
In response to the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, the sufferer was “struck within the head by a megaphone wielded by a pro-Palestinian protestor.”
A video posted to social media exhibits the person mendacity on the bottom with an apparent head damage as two folks, together with a pro-Palestinian demonstrator, attempt to assist.
“Whereas we look forward to extra data from our legislation enforcement companions, we remind you that that is the fourth main antisemitic crime dedicated in Los Angeles this yr alone,” the Federation mentioned in a press release. “Violence in opposition to our folks has no place in civilized society. We demand security. We won’t tolerate violence in opposition to our neighborhood. We’ll do every little thing in our energy to stop it.”
The Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Workplace decided the reason for demise was a blunt power head damage and dominated the way of demise to be murder, the discharge said.
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Authorities didn’t say whether or not anybody has been arrested in reference to the incident.
The sheriff’s workplace added that it has not dominated out the chance that Kessler’s demise was the results of a hate crime and is urging anybody who witnessed the incident or who was current on the demonstration to contact Detective Stump at 805-384-4745.
Nameless ideas may be submitted via Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or by following this link.
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