Man Charged in Hate Crime Against Couple
A man was charged under a federal hate crime law Wednesday in connection with threats made to a white woman married to an African American.
Prosecutors said Takashi Yasuhara, 57, has agreed to plead guilty to the charge and faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
According to the criminal complaint, Yasuhara, who is an Asian American, sent an anonymous letter in January to Deborah Stoqueler, 26. In the letter, he allegedly claimed to be a member of an organization called, “Citizens Against Blacks,” and used racial epithets to describe her husband.
The letter told her to get rid of him or “we will have to terminate him and cut off his sexual organ and mail it to you,” authorities said.
Assistant U.S. Atty. Michael Gennaco said Yasuhara used a stenciling kit and wore rubber gloves when he drafted the letter so he would leave no fingerprints.
In March, Yasuhara confronted Stoqueler at her job and falsely told her that two men were waiting in the parking lot because she failed to heed the warnings.
Yasuhara, a retiree, is to be arraigned in Los Angeles federal court on Tuesday.
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