A Chabad rabbi in Southern California has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a 28-year-old man was fatally struck by a vehicle in the parking lot of a Costco store near Los Angeles.
The suspect, Rabbi Abba Bryski, 35, of Agoura Hills, is the son of Rabbi Moshe Bryski, a prominent Chabad leader in Southern California and a well-known figure in the Los Angeles Jewish community.
The incident occurred Tuesday evening near the gas pumps of a Costco location in Camarillo, northwest of Los Angeles. According to the Ventura County Sheriff's Office, deputies were dispatched to the scene after receiving a report that a pedestrian had been struck by a vehicle.
When deputies arrived, witnesses directed them to Bryski, identifying him as the driver involved in the collision. Officers located him sitting inside his vehicle in the parking lot, detained him and subsequently placed him under arrest.
The victim, a 28-year-old resident of Modesto, California, was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition, where he was later pronounced dead. Authorities have not released his identity.
Bryski was booked into the Ventura County Jail on suspicion of murder. He also faces an allegation of resisting or obstructing a law enforcement officer. His bail was set at $3 million.
Investigators have not revealed whether the collision was deliberate
The circumstances surrounding the fatal incident remain unclear. Investigators have not disclosed what happened in the moments before the collision, whether an altercation occurred between Bryski and the victim, or whether the vehicle strike was intentional.
Authorities have also not explained what evidence led them to investigate the death as a homicide rather than a fatal traffic accident.
The scene outside the Costco store in Camarillo, California, where a 28-year-old man was fatally struck by a vehicle
(Photo: Ventura County Sheriff's Office)
Under California law, a murder conviction does not necessarily require proof that a defendant specifically intended to kill. In some circumstances, conduct carried out with knowledge of a serious danger to human life and conscious disregard for that danger can support a murder charge. Ordinary driving negligence, however, is not sufficient on its own.
The investigation is being led by the Ventura County Sheriff's Office Major Crimes Bureau, which has appealed to the public and potential witnesses for information that could help establish the circumstances of the incident. The county medical examiner is responsible for determining the cause and manner of death.
Son of a prominent Chabad leader
Bryski's father, Rabbi Moshe Bryski, is a leading figure in the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in Southern California and oversees the organization's activities in the Conejo Valley region.
He serves as executive director of Chabad of the Conejo and dean of the Conejo Jewish Academy, a Jewish educational institution in Agoura Hills. Over several decades, he has played a central role in establishing Jewish educational programs, synagogues and community institutions throughout the area.
His influence extends beyond the local community. He was previously named among the region's 25 most influential figures by a local weekly publication and was selected to deliver the keynote address at Chabad's international gathering of emissaries, one of the movement's most prominent annual events.
Authorities have not disclosed a possible motive in the case, and investigators have yet to establish publicly what led to the fatal encounter in the Costco parking lot.