3 Muslim Cousins Charged With Hate Crime In San Francisco For Attacking Gay Man

From Weasel Zippers:

Islam means peace...Islam means peace...Islam means peace...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Three cousins from Hayward have been charged in San Francisco with a hate crime and assault for allegedly firing a BB rifle at the face of a man they believed was gay, an attack the men videotaped, authorities said Wednesday.

Mohammad Habibzada, Shafiq Hashemi and Sayed Bassam, all 24, are scheduled to be arraigned today in San Francisco Superior Court. They are free on $50,000 bond apiece.

The victim of Friday's attack was walking on the 3200 block of 16th Street near Guerrero Street about 10 p.m. when a car pulled up and someone inside opened fire with a BB rifle, police said.

The man was hit in the face but refused medical treatment, said Lt. Lyn Tomioka, spokeswoman for the Police Department. He reported the shooting to police, who pulled over a car that matched the assailants' vehicle a short distance away and arrested the three Hayward men.

Investigators believe the assailants chose the victim because he appeared to be gay. When the men were pulled over, police found a video camera that was used to film the shooting, investigators said.