Four Armenian protesters wanted for alleged Hate crimes against Turkish Consulate members

By CHRISTINA CHKARBOUL

USC Daily Trojan

The Los Angeles Police Department’s Major Crimes Division is asking the public to help identify four suspects allegedly responsible for committing hate crimes against members of the Turkish Consulate who spoke at USC in September.

In a release Monday, the LAPD wrote that the suspects attacked three Turkish Consulate members on Sept. 29 as they were leaving USC’s Annenberg Hall after a panel discussion. The suspects allegedly “pushed, punched, kicked” and threw water at the officials, according to the release.

A group of protesters gathered outside the event, some entering the building, to demonstrate against the University’s decision to host the Turkish officials amid an offensive by Azerbaijan against the majority-Armenian state of Nagorno-Karabakh the same week. Protesters condemned the timing of the event, citing the Turkish state’s denial of the Armenian genocide.