A judge’s gavel for the files.
Bjoern Wylezich, HO / TNS
A Houston man has pleaded guilty to a hate crime charge over accusations he used a dating app to convince a transgender woman to meet with him and then beating her with a gun.
Salih Ali Mohammed Alhemoud on July 20 agreed to plead guilty to a federal hate crime count and admitted that he targeted the woman based on her sexual orientation, court records state. The term transgender refers to a person’s gender identity.
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He now faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000. He’s scheduled to be sentenced later this year.
In August 2022, Alhemoud used Grindr, a dating app designed for LGBTQ people, to contact his victim and arrange a meeting at her apartment, according to federal prosecutors. When they were in her bedroom, he pulled out a gun and began assaulting her, according to a complaint.
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Alhemoud admitted to pointing a gun at the victim, striking her in the head with the gun and making threats and directing slurs at her during the assault, according to the plea agreement.
According to the FBI, Alhemoud told the victim she was going to die and made statements such as “my religion considers you a demon” and that she “was a demon like the others, all you trans people.”
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Investigators alleged Alhemoud targeted multiple victims
It was not the only time that Alhemoud used the internet to find victims, investigators alleged.
Two other people told investigators that Alhemoud had come to their shared apartment in July 2022, after reaching out to one of them through Instagram. When he arrived, he threatened them with a gun and yelled slurs at them, according to the complaint.
Three other people, including two transgender women and a gay man, said they were in an apartment along with Alhemoud in September 2022 when he threatened to kill one of them, stole some of their belongings and drove away in a Dodge Charger.
Alhemoud was arrested shortly after the alleged September robbery.
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As he was driving through downtown Houston, he threatened two people with a gun after they honked at him for stopping his car in the middle of the road, according to a complaint.
Police tried to stop Alhemoud’s Charger after the other driver called 911, but he led them on a high-speed chase that ended in a crash. When police took him into custody, they found a 9 mm Glock handgun, according to authorities.
Alhemoud was ultimately indicted in connection with the August and September crimes. He was also charged with aggravated assault and aggravated robbery in Harris County in connection with all three encounters.
He’s been held in custody since his arrest. A magistrate judge in 2022 ruled that Alhemoud was a flight risk, in part because he had no major ties to Houston and had a Kuwaiti passport. When he was arrested in Harris County in September 2022, he said he had only lived in Houston for 2 months.
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In exchange for his federal plea, prosecutors wrote that they would dismiss five other charges against Alhemoud, including a second hate crime charge involving one of the other women, two kidnapping counts and two counts of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.
Under the original indictment, Alhemoud faced a possible penalty of up to life in federal prison if he were convicted.
The plea agreement promises not to bring more federal charges against Alhemoud related to the cases he’s already been indicted on. The plea agreement doesn’t affect potential state charges.
Alhemoud also agreed to pay unspecified restitution to his victims and forfeit property, including a handgun. He is scheduled to be sentenced in October.
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