Irvine, Calif. (July 27, 2017) – After a months-long investigation, Irvine Police Department detectives on Wednesday made an arrest in a hate crime that occurred at a local Target store in March. 

On March 1 at approximately 8 p.m., two women, one wearing a hijab, were leaving the Target at 3750 Barranca Parkway in Irvine. A man in a silver Toyota Camry pulled up alongside them and made a religious slur. The women got into their car and drove away. 

Moments later, the victims were stopped at a traffic light on Culver Drive and Alton Parkway when they heard a clanking sound. The same Toyota Camry then pulled up alongside the women’s car, and the man who had accosted them at Target began to throw coins at the women through a window that was rolled down. The passenger was struck but uninjured in the incident. The victims were able to get a partial license plate and report it to police.

On Wednesday, Brandon Ricardo Pascual, 35, was arrested on two felony hate crime charges and booked at the Irvine Police Department.

Anyone with information in this case is asked to contact Detective Leticia Hernandez at 949-724-7245 or lhernandez@cityofirvine.org.

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