Los Angeles, Ca
Judge rules Orange County man was insane during deadly beating of elderly man
An Anaheim man accused of murdering a 70-year-old man and assaulting another man in 2021 was found not guilty due to insanity in a Tuesday court ruling.
David Abbott, 33, is accused of fatally beating Rahmatolah “David” Yaghoubi, 70, on May 31, 2021 in an unprovoked attack outside the victim’s home.
Less than two hours before David’s murder, Abbott punched another man in the head after spotting him inside his home’s garage, according to court documents.
David’s loved ones, including his brother, John Yaghoubi, were unhappy with Tuesday’s ruling.
“He was truly a leader for our family,” John said. “He was a very gentle giant. He loved people. He loved humans. He loved animals. Never hurt anybody.”
Abbott, who had been released on bond from a previous assault case, was wandering around the victim’s Anaheim neighborhood on May 31, 2021. He had punched a 60-year-old man in his garage before the man was able to chase Abbott away and call the police.
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David Abbott, 33, found guilty of fatally beating Rahmatolah “David” Yaghoubi, 70, on May 31, 2021 in an unprovoked attack in Anaheim. (Anaheim Police Department) -
Anaheim Police Department officers outside Rahmatolah “David” Yaghoubi’s home on May 31, 2021. (KTLA) -
Anaheim Police Department officers outside Rahmatolah “David” Yaghoubi’s home on May 31, 2021. (KTLA) -
John Yaghoubi (third from left) and loved ones expressed their disappointment after a court ruling on Jan. 23, 2024. (KTLA) -
Anaheim Police Department officers outside Rahmatolah “David” Yaghoubi’s home on May 31, 2021. (KTLA) -
Anaheim Police Department officers outside Rahmatolah “David” Yaghoubi’s home on May 31, 2021. (KTLA)
The suspect left the first home and continued wandering around. David was standing in his front yard near the intersection of Catalpa Avenue and Falmouth Avenue when Abbott spotted him. For unknown reasons, Abbott approached David and suddenly began beating him, authorities said.
The suspect spent several minutes brutally beating David with his hands and feet.
“He took over my brother and, for seven long minutes, he mauled him to death,” John said.
According to court documents, witnesses said Abbott was making incoherent statements about religion and at one point yelled, “Get out of him!” as he continued beating David.
Officers arrived at the scene and threatened to use a taser on him before he was eventually taken into custody.
In a post-arrest interview, Abbott reportedly made numerous nonsensical statements including that the victim had a “green light coming out of his eyes before the attack.” Abbott was also found with methamphetamine in his system at the time of the murder.
Abbott’s attorneys cited a history of mental illness dating back to his teenage years and said during the trial that he “appeared to think he could look into the eyes of people and determine if they were possessed by a demon,” according to the Orange County Register.
A deal was reached in which Abbott pled guilty to attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon along with the first-degree murder of David.
He was sentenced to eight years to life in prison, but due to being found legally insane, his prison sentence will be suspended and he’ll be committed to a mental-health facility indefinitely.
The Orange County Superior Court judge who confirmed the insanity finding said the ruling was what the law called for under the circumstances but said she understood why the victim’s loved ones were unhappy with the outcome.
“The only issue I bring up is people go out and kill somebody and claim insanity,” the victim’s brother said. “I’m not sure if that’s really a good cause of going to kill people and getting away with it. I’m just hoping that the system makes a decision where he won’t come out for a long time so that people can be secure and guys like him are kept away from society.”
The DA’s office said if Abbott is ever deemed mentally sane enough to be released from the mental hospital, he’ll be sent to prison to begin serving his sentence of eight years to life.
Due to the maximum sentence of life in prison, the victim’s attorneys can appear at any future parole hearing to argue why they believe Abbott shouldn’t be released.
A hospital needs help identifying a male patient who was found injured and unconscious in downtown Los Angeles.
The man is believed to be in his 30s, according to the Los Angeles General Medical Center.
He was found injured on the ground on Omar Street and has been hospitalized since June 22.
He stands 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs 176 pounds. He has brown eyes, dark brown hair and tattoos across his upper body.
He did not have any personal belongings to help staff identify him or contact loved ones. Workers did not disclose the nature of his injuries.
Anyone who recognizes the man is asked to call clinical social worker Cesar Robles at 323-409-6885.
The public can also call the L.A. General Medical Center’s Department of Social Work at 323-409-5253 or, after hours from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m., call 323-409-6883. On weekends, call 323-409-5254.
Police are asking the public for help Wednesday in identifying a hit-and-run driver who left a woman badly injured in Long Beach late last month. The May 24 crash occurred around 11 p.m. as the victim was crossing East 2nd Street, according to the Long Beach Police Department. Video provided by police showed a dark-colored […]
WARNING: Video footage contains graphic violence
A 62-year-old street vendor is recovering after a brutally violent attack by another woman in broad daylight as bystanders in downtown Los Angeles looked on.
The attack happened around 4 p.m. on June 15 in the 700 block of Figueroa Street, where Arabelia Martinez has sold hot dogs for years to support herself and her family.
Video of the incident, which has since circulated widely online, appears to show a woman confronting Martinez at her stand before spraying sauce across the vendor’s cart. Martinez responds by throwing what appears to be Tajín seasoning in the woman’s direction, and the confrontation quickly escalates.
The difficult-to-watch footage shows Martinez being shoved to the ground and struck multiple times as people look on. Some can be seen attempting to intervene, but the assault continues for roughly a minute before coming to an end.
“I was speechless,” Martinez’s son, Constantino Garcia, said after watching the video. “I couldn’t even see the whole thing.”
According to Garcia, the suspect approached his mother before the attack and attempted to intimidate her into giving her money.
“The lady came up to my mom trying to intimidate her and extort her for money, telling her she needed a permit to sell, which my mom does have,” Garcia told KTLA’s Carlos Saucedo.
When Martinez refused, Garcia claims the woman became verbally abusive.
“After she didn’t get her way and tried to extort my mom, she said, ‘Go back to Mexico,’ and made some racist remarks,” he said. “She said some disgusting things to my mom.”
Garcia said his mother continues to suffer lingering effects from the attack.
“She keeps complaining about her head,” he said. “We need to go see a head specialist because her head doesn’t stop hurting. As you could see in the video, she got slammed to the ground.”
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A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia) -
A 62-year-old L.A. street vendor was violently beaten by another woman downtown as bystanders watched the broad daylight attack on June 15, 2026. (Constantino Garcia)
The video has also sparked outrage over the response from some witnesses who were nearby during the assault.
“What’s going on with our society?” Garcia said. “Are we getting desensitized to an elderly woman being beaten in broad daylight and being surrounded by people doing the bare minimum to help her? That was horrible for me to watch.”
Witness Sebastian Gutierrez said he arrived moments after the confrontation and saw Garcia’s attacker causing additional chaos in the area.
“The lady began to flip over the tables of vendors,” Gutierrez said, describing the woman as possibly unstable. “It definitely seemed like there were mental health issues or drugs involved, like we see with a lot of things here in downtown L.A.,” he said.
The Los Angeles Police Department has launched a battery investigation into the incident KTLA confirmed, though no suspect information or news of a potential arrest has been released.
Meanwhile, Martinez’s family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help with her recovery and raise awareness about the dangers street vendors face daily.
“I hope that my mom gets justice for what happened to her,” Garcia said. He added that he’s been encouraged by the public response to the video.
“I’m grateful people are sympathizing with my mom,” he said. “People are giving it the attention it deserves.”
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