Man accused of hate crime, assault after attacks on 2 men in downtown Palo Alto
PALO ALTO – A man was arrested in Palo Alto Friday morning after two men were attacked while sitting in their vehicles in the downtown area, police said.
Around 9:30 a.m., one of the victims told police the suspect may have brandished a knife at him on the 200 block of University Avenue. The victim, man in his 40s from Azerbaijan, also reported the suspect told him to "Go back to your country."
According to investigators, the victim was parked on the 400 block of Emerson when the suspect parked his van in front of him. The suspect then got out of his vehicle and banged on the victim's driver side window, using an object the victim believed was a pocket knife.
Police said the suspect accused the victim of following him and then yelled to "Go back to your country," "We don't want to see you here," and "Leave our country." The victim rolled down his window to talk to the suspect, at which point the suspect spat in his face.
He then drove away from the suspect. Police said the suspect caught up with the victim and the victim then called 911.
As officers responded to the first victim, a second victim called police, saying the same suspect approached him while parked in the area of Lytton Avenue and Ramona Street. In this incident, the suspect accused the victim of following him and told him to step out of his car, which the victim refused.
Police said the suspect then attempted to punch the victim through a half open car window, but missed. He then broke the side view mirror of the victim's car.
The suspect on the 500 block of Emerson Street. Officers said the suspect ran away from them. Following a brief struggle, the suspect was arrested nearby at Lytton Plaza, according to police.
No injuries to the suspect or officers were reported.
A search of the suspect's van yielded brass knuckles wrapped in electrical tape, which had a similar appearance to a folded pocketknife, according to police. No actual knife was found.
The suspect, identified as 35-year-old Ambrose Jamari Ochola of Walnut Creek, was booked into the Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of multiple charges, including a hate crime, battery, resisting arrest, assault and vandalism, along with felony possession of an illegal weapon.
It was not immediately known when Ochola would appear in court on the charges.