Three teenagers accused in a string of hate crime related attacks in Hillcrest pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors say they committed the crimes with a fourth teen who was already charged back in September. NBC 7’s Shandel Menezes has the latest.
Three teenagers were charged Thursday with felonies in connection with a series of pellet gun attacks in Hillcrest last September.
Anthony Lopez-Quiniones, 19, Arturo Herrera-Sustaita, 19, and Angelo Nathaniel Aron,19, were arrested in connection with the early September attacks on people who walked on the sidewalk in the historically LGBTQ-friendly community. At least four people were struck and injured, according to SDPD Lt. Weeden.
Each suspect was charged and pleaded not guilty to six counts of battery with added hate crime allegations, which escalates the typically misdemeanor charges to felonies. If convicted of all charges, the trio could each be sentenced to up to more than six years in prison.
A fourth suspect, Hernán Garduño Hernández, 19, has already been arraigned and pleaded not guilty to the same charges. Hernández was arrested ahead of his alleged counterparts and remains in custody on $30,000 bail.
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In the September attacks that all four are suspected of, detectives from SDPD's Criminal Intelligence Unit were able to obtain footage of the suspected vehicle from a surveillance camera. Investigators ran the plate and the suspect vehicle was identified, leading to the arrests, according to SDPD.
The deputy district attorney said at Hernández's arraignement police found a gel blaster device and hundreds of gel pellets inside Hernández's car. Hernández's defense attorney argued that the defendant didn't know the culture in Hillcrest.
Those incidents came after similar attacks in the Hillcrest community in May that are not believed to be connected, but also were being investigated as hate crimes, Wheelen said.
The suspects are out on bail as they await trial.
Two weeks ago, another man was jailed on suspicion of taking part in hate-motivated tagging crimes in Hillcrest back in August.
"The San Diego Police Department is committed to ensuring a safe space for all members of our community and acts of hate such as these will not be tolerated," SDPD said in a release addressing the incident.
