Men shoot transgender woman with paintballs after she used women’s bathroom, feds say
Three men assaulted a transgender woman after she used the women’s bathroom at a McDonald’s in Puerto Rico, federal authorities said. Two recently pleaded guilty to charges related to the incident.
A 29-year-old transgender woman, identified in court filings only by initials, used the women’s restroom at a restaurant in Toa Baja in February 2020, according to an indictment filed in the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico in August 2021. A photo of her at the restaurant was shared on social media, the indictment said.
While out driving the following day, Anthony Steven Lobos-Ruiz, Jordany Rafael Laboy-Garcia and Christian Yamaurie Rivera-Otero saw the woman on the roadside, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a Sept. 25 news release. The men recognized her from posts about her use of the McDonald’s women’s bathroom, prosecutors said.
Lobos-Ruiz filmed himself yelling “disparaging and threatening comments to (the woman) from inside the car,” prosecutors said.
The trio decided to get a paintball gun and paintballs, then returned to shoot her, the indictment said.
Lobos-Ruiz filmed “Laboy-Garcia shooting at (the woman) multiple times with the paintball gun,” prosecutors said. Lobos-Ruiz shared the videos with the others, the release said.
Later, Rivera-Otero asked Lobos-Ruiz to delete videos of the assault and harassment, and he complied, the indictment said.
Rivera-Otero’s attorney declined to comment when reached out to by McClatchy News on Sept. 26. Laboy-Garcia’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Laboy-Garcia and Rivera-Otero pleaded guilty to federal charges of “conspiracy to commit a hate crime and obstruction of justice, arising out of an assault with a dangerous weapon against a transgender woman because of her gender identity,” prosecutors said.
In the plea agreement, Laboy-Garcia “admitted that he shot paintballs at (the woman) because she was, and was perceived to be, transgender,” federal officials said.
Prosecutors said that Rivera-Otero “admitted to directing his co-defendant to delete video recordings of the assault and harassment of A.N.L.”
The pair are scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 10, the release said.
Previously, Lobos-Ruiz “pleaded guilty to committing a hate crime and was sentenced to 33 months in prison,” prosecutors said.
Toa Baja is about 12 miles west of San Juan.
This story was originally published September 27, 2023 at 12:06 PM with the headline "Men shoot transgender woman with paintballs after she used women’s bathroom, feds say."
