Suspect in Boy’s Murder Attacked in Court

The one-armed man accused of murdering and dismembering a 12-year-old La Habra boy pleaded not guilty in Municipal Court in Fullerton on Friday, moments before another murder suspect attacked him.

John Samuel Ghobrial was jumped by Benjamin Lemus, a suspected La Habra gang member awaiting arraignment on charges that he murdered an Anaheim teen. Bailiffs used pepper spray to break up the altercation.

“It was unprovoked,” Orange County Marshal’s Sgt. Kyle Thomas said. “Ghobrial was leaving the prisoner’s cell when Lemus jumped up and started swinging his arms. . . . It was quickly broken up by pepper spray as two deputies restrained Lemus.”

Thomas said the court was evacuated for a few minutes to make sure no one would be hurt by the fumes from the pepper spray. Ghobrial was taken to St. Jude Medical Center. He was later returned to custody.

Ghobrial, a 27-year-old Egyptian emigre who is missing his right hand and forearm, suffered an abrasion on his forehead, Thomas said.

It’s unclear why Lemus attacked Ghobrial, but the matter is under investigation, Thomas said.

Ghobrial is accused of sexually assaulting Juan Delgado, asphyxiating him, dismembering his body and encasing some body parts in concrete blocks. He is being held without bail. A preliminary hearing is set for June 17.