TRACY, Calif. — With a straight face and appearing motionless, Leonardo Cabral sat in an orange jumpsuit with shackles around his wrists as he heard the charges against him Wednesday in a Manteca courtroom.
The Tracy resident is accused of a hate crime, using a BB gun to shoot and injure two Hispanic landscapers Monday afternoon, according to the San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office.
"I am very concerned about public safety in this matter. This is very dangerous behavior," said Judge Chrishna Martinez as she set no bail for Cabral.
His charges include two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with hate crime enhancements, and a single count of resisting, obstructing or delaying a peace officer, connected to the SWAT standoff at his home Monday that eventually led to his peaceful surrender.
Cabral only spoke when asked to during his arraignment, saying much less than what Tracy police officers allege he confessed to this week.
"He spoke to our investigators and told us why he did what he did," said Tracy Police Sgt. Michael Richards. "Around 1 p.m. (Monday), we got some 911 calls in the 1100 block of Dominque Drive in Tracy, regarding a person who was shooting a BB gun at some gardeners in the area."
Tracy police believe the BB bullets came from Cabral's gun and hit two men across the street who were just doing their job. Both gardeners had only minor injuries and declined medical attention.
"From what we understand, it was completely unprovoked. He just started shooting the people," said Sgt. Richards. "The things with the racial undertones are pretty rare, especially when the person committing the crime is of the same ethnicity as the person he's targeting. It's one of those odd ones."
In court Wednesday, prosecutors alleged Cabral used racial slurs before opening fire and was aiming for the gardeners' heads. He is set to appear back in court Tuesday for further arraignment.
Police believe racial hatred might not have been the only factor involved.
"There were obviously some mental health issues going on at the initial contact, and then we found out he's done this before and he had a felony warrant out for his arrest," said Sgt. Richards. "If you try to victimize people in our community just doing their jobs, living their life, we’re going to come after you."
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