Nabra was the eldest of Egyptian American Mohmoud Hassanen’s four daughters.
Nabra Hassanen, a 17-year-old Muslim girl was assaulted and killed on Sunday near a mosque in Sterling, Virginia.
Hassanen’s body was found in a pond. According to the police, the incident was most likely a “road rage” rather than a hate crime, New York Times reported.
According to the report, Hassanen, along with a group of friends, was on her way to the mosque after a late-night event at the All Dulles Area Muslim Society in Sterling, VA. The teenagers also planned to visit a nearby fast-food restaurant afterward.
The group encountered 22-year-old motorist Darwin Martinez Torres about 3.40 a.m. and an argument ensued. Hassanen’s group ran from Torres, but soon Torres found them in a parking lot. He allegedly grabbed Hassanen and hit her with a baseball bat, the police said in a statement posted online.
Her body was found about 11 hours later and an autopsy report said she had sustained blunt force trauma to the upper body.
“His anger over the encounter led to violence when he hit Nabra with a baseball bat,” police said.
However, the girl’s father Mohmoud Hassanen rejected the police’s findings and said that he believes that his daughter was targeted because she was a Muslim.
“I don’t believe this story,” he told Guardian. “He killed my daughter because she is Muslim. That’s what I believe. That’s what I told him.”
Nabra was the eldest of Egyptian American Mohmoud Hassanen’s four daughters.
“Our hearts break for the family, friends and fellow congregants of Nabra Hassanen,” Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia tweeted.
Torres has been charged with murder and is being held without bail pending a court appearance on June 19.