LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Southern California college professor was arrested Thursday in the death of a Jewish protester during demonstrations over the Israel-Hamas war.
A Southern California college professor was arrested Thursday in the death of a Jewish protester during demonstrations over the Israel-Hamas war.
Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji, 50, was booked into jail on suspicion of of involuntary manslaughter — the unintentional killing of another person, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said. The district attorney’s office said it was reviewing the case and expects to make a charging decision later Thursday.
A man who answered the phone at a mobile number listed for Alnaji in public records said he did not want to comment. He did not give his name.
Paul Kessler, 69, died early Nov. 6 at a hospital following a confrontation the previous day with the suspect during what started as a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Thousand Oaks, a suburb northwest of Los Angeles, Ventura County Sheriff Jim Fryhoff told reporters on Nov. 7.
Kessler was among a group of pro-Israel demonstrators who showed up at the event that was advertised as a peaceful gathering to support Palestinians, officials said.
Fryhoff at the time said deputies determined Kessler fell backward and struck his head on the ground but that investigators did not have a clear view from video footage of what they described as a physical altercation between the two men before the fall.
