4 Arraigned in Assault on Couple

Four people accused of a racially motivated assault on an Iranian couple in a La Verne supermarket parking lot in May were arraigned in Pomona Superior Court Thursday.

Judge Robert Dukes ordered William Killackey, 21; his sister, Amy, 19; Scott Robert Wilson, 28, and Timothy Robert Zaal, 25, to appear for pretrial motions Oct. 20. All are accused of felony assault, and the three men face additional charges of civil rights violations under a state law that applies to racial attacks.

Manochehr Sadri and his wife, Farzaneh, testified at a preliminary hearing that they were walking to their car, pushing their 2-month-old baby in a shopping cart, when they heard racial slurs and were assaulted.

Sadri said he was kicked and beaten and his wife was hit in the face. Police said the defendants looked like “skinheads” and one of them was carrying cards from white supremacist groups. Lawyers for the defendants say their clients deny being involved in any racist organization.