By Lizet Gonzalez
SACRAMENTO – Defendant Ahmed Naser sat here in Sacramento County Superior Court accused of felony assault with a deadly weapon on a MetroPCS customer last November—the judge this week found he was probably guilty but doctors were ordered to determine the competency of Naser before a trial can be held.
The facts of the incident were presented in court by the three deputies who investigated the assault on Nov. 23, 2020, at a MetroPCS store in Sacramento County.
Reportedly, witnesses told deputies there were three customers in line, and Naser, the second person in line, started punching the person in front of him and took out a screwdriver and stabbed him.
The alleged victim was on the floor when Naser stood there for a moment after a female customer behind Naser, presumably with him, intervened. They got into an argument in a non-English language and after they stopped arguing Naser ran out of the store.
Deputy District Attorney Emily Divinigracia called Deputy Ariel Meyer of Sacramento County Sheriff’s Dept. one of the three deputies that responded to the call. For the purpose of witness privacy, witnesses are a male employee, a female employee, and an alleged victim, by the events recalled by the deputies in court.
Deputy Meyer testified that when she arrived at the scene she was flagged down by a female MetroPCS employee, who told her someone had been stabbed and the person that had done the stabbing had left. When she first saw the alleged victim, he was sitting inside the store, covering his face. According to her he looked distressed.
The deputy said he was “bleeding a good amount” and that he had a laceration above his right eye, and some on his neck. According to Deputy Meyer’s report the alleged victim did not know the defendant and didn’t do anything to provoke him.
Assistant Public Defender Stephen Hirsch was preparing to speak and cross-examine Deputy Meyer when defendant Naser whispered to him, wanting to make sure he asked some of his questions—the defendant raised his voice, loudly stating, “I’m not done yet!”
Visibly impatient, Naser continued whispering, and raised his voice a second time before Judge James Arguelles let him know if he continued talking he would make him leave.
Throughout the whole court hearing, defendant Naser continued to whisper to his defense attorney a few more times every time it was his round of questioning the witnesses.
PD Hirsch asked Deputy Meyer about video surveillance that captured the event, specifically if she was able to identify the object used in the incident. Deputy Meyer said she was unable to identify the object used.
Deputy Casey Rubinoff testified about speaking with a female employee, who told him that she had just gotten back from throwing away the trash outside when the incident broke out. She saw Naser start punching the person in front of him with both fists.
The alleged victim bent over to defend himself from the attacks. Naser, the employee stated, also stabbed the person in the eye, and the person fell to the ground. Naser stood on top of the victim and then ran out of the store.
Deputy Rubinoff then overheard a radio dispatch that the Sacramento fire department had responded to a medical emergency call nearby for an individual that was experiencing chest pains and who matched the description of the alleged attacker.
When he responded, he saw defendant Naser and located the screwdriver on the sidewalk, two yards away from where Naser was sitting. According to Deputy Rubinoff the screwdriver was approximately six inches, but he says he wasn’t a part of the evidence team. He assisted with the arrest.
DDA Divinigracia called Deputy Troy Mahon, who confirmed the arrest of Naser, later identified by a male employee as the person that stabbed the alleged victim.
Judge Arguelles ruled, “It appears to the court within that the offense was committed, there is sufficient cause to believe” he may be guilty. But rather than set the case for trial ordered the defendant be examined for mental competency before trial.
Earlier in February, court-appointed doctors found Naser incompetent to stand trial. The parties will return for a hearing March 10, at 8:30 a.m.
Lizet Gonzalez is in her final year at San Francisco State University, majoring in Criminal Justice and Spanish. Born in Acapulco, Mexico, she currently resides in the Bay Area.
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