Suspects in Hate-Inspired Beating Plead No Contest

Two men of Iranian Muslim descent accused of a hate-inspired assault on two men they believed were Jews pleaded no contest to lesser charges Monday in Beverly Hills Superior Court. Both were placed on probation.

Daoud Mohammad Majid, 19, and Mohammed Hassan Aref, 22, of Los Angeles, faced as much as eight years’ imprisonment if they had been convicted of the original charges of committing an assault likely to cause great bodily injury enhanced by a hate-crime allegation, said Scott Millington, head of the district attorney’s hate-crimes unit. The men pleaded no contest to a hate-crime attack, without the bodily injury component.

Majid was put on three years’ probation and ordered to receive tolerance counseling, go to the Museum of Tolerance, perform community service and make restitution to the victims, Millington said.

The same conditions were imposed on Aref, but his sentencing was postponed. He was ordered back to court on Nov. 3. If Aref completes all the conditions within a year, his conviction probably will be reduced to a misdemeanor, Millington said.

Majid and Aref were accused of beating Fareed Kanani and his friend Michael Kashany, both 25, in September while screaming, “Kill the Jews!”

The attack occurred as the two victims were leaving the Goodbar nightclub in West Hollywood. Kashany was kicked, and Kanani suffered cuts and bruises. The attacks prompted strong denunciations from Jewish and Muslim groups.