
Khalid Elhindi (KHOU/YouTube).
A Texas man allegedly made a makeshift blowtorch with a Lysol can, lighter and Gatorade bottle filled with gasoline in an attempted assault of a co-worker whom he believed made an offensive comment about his mother.
The suspect, 28-year-old Khalid Elhindi, and the victim both worked at Imperial Star Solar in Tomball, a Houston suburb, but worked on different assembly lines, a probable cause arrest affidavit said. The victim was in the parking lot Monday when Elhindi approached him and asked him his name. Elhindi pulled out the Gatorade bottle and began spraying the gasoline on the victim, the complaint said. The suspect then allegedly took the lighter and Lysol spray can tried to light it on fire — as if it was a blowtorch — as he chased the victim across the parking lot.
More from Law&Crime: ‘Hanging down his face’: Man rips out stranger’s eyeball after victim asks ‘how are you doing’ while walking past him, police say
After the victim fell, Elhindi straddled him and tried to spark the homemade blowtorch but it wouldn’t light, the affidavit said. The suspect allegedly said he was going to “mess up” the victim over comments made about his mother in Sudan before repeatedly punching him in the face.
Witnesses broke up the fight. The victim told cops he did not know the defendant or his mother, and he has never been to Sudan. He suffered a possible fracture to his left ankle, bruising to both eyes and his eyes were irritated from the gasoline.
Cops arrested Elhindi on Tuesday on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He remained at the Harris County Jail on a $50,000 bond as of Wednesday morning. Elhindi, who reportedly said he had worked at Imperial Star Solar for about two months, was appointed a defense attorney, according to court records.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.