Driver faces FBI hate crime investigation after ploughing into pedestrians ‘he thought were Muslim’

The defendant suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after returning from Army duty in the Middle East, according to his brother

The FBI has opened a federal hate crime investigation after an Army veteran ploughed his car into a crowd of people at 60mph – because he reportedly thought some of them were Muslim.

Joel Peoples, 34, a former sergeant who , was charged with eight counts of attempted murder after driving his black 2010 Toyota Corolla into pedestrians at an intersection in Sunnyvale, San Francisco, on Tuesday evening. However, he was not charged with a hate crime by county prosecutors.

On Saturday, the FBI confirmed that it was investigating it as a hate crime, a move praised by the local Muslim community.

Madihha Ahussain, the special counsel for anti-Muslim bigotry for Muslim Advocates, told the San Francisco Chronicle: “It sends a strong message from the perspective of the federal government that they are going to take a stand against violence that is potentially motivated by bias. “We hope that they will pursue a robust investigation ... and we hope that they will see it through the end.”

Speaking outside the courthouse earlier this week, the Sunnyvale police chief said it appeared the victims were likely targeted “based on their race”, and the defendant’s belief “that they were of the Muslim faith”.

Peoples had just picked up food and was heading to a bible study class at the time of the incident, police said.

After driving his car into the crowd – hitting seven pedestrians and one cyclist – he reportedly left the car and said: “Thank you Jesus”.

One of the victims, a 13-year-old girl, is in a critical condition in a coma with brain swelling.

Three others are in a stable condition with major injuries.

Peoples’ brother Joshua said the defendant had struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder since returning from the Middle East in 2006.