A terrible murder of a Muslim teenager inspired many on the left to blame President Donald Trump and Islamophobia, but the narrative collapsed when more was learned about the murderer captured by police.
Seventeen-year-old Nabra Hassanen and her friends got into an altercation with a man after leaving an IHOP in Virginia Sunday morning. Police said she was abducted soon after, assaulted in a brutal fashion, and murdered. Her body was found in a pond later that day.
“I think it had to do with the way she was dressed and the fact that she’s Muslim,” Hassanen’s mother told the Washington Post. “Why would you kill a kid? What did my daughter do to deserve this?”
The teen had gone to the IHOP after attending evening prayers at their mosque.
Because Hassanen was a Muslim, many on social media assumed that her heinous murder had something to do with her religion. Many messages were posted blaming Trump and Islamophobia.
Police questioned 22-year-old Darwin A. Martinez Torres while searching for Hassanen because he was driving suspiciously in the area. He was charged with the murder Monday, but one key detail about the man is undoing their attempt to blame the killing on Trump.
It appears that Torres is an illegal immigrant.
According to a statement from ICE spokesperson Carissa Cutrell, they are seeking a detainer on Torres.
“On June 19, ICE lodged a detainer on Darwin Martinez Torres, a citizen and national of El Salvador, with the Adult Detention Center in Fairfax, Virginia," the statement read. "ICE lodges detainers on aliens who have been arrested on local criminal charges when the agency has probable cause to believe an alien is removable from the United States. Mr. Martinez Torres has no prior encounters with ICE.”
Here is a sample of the comments on social media blaming Trump:
The death of Nabra Hassanen is on the hands of Donald Trump, and any Republican who refuses to rebuke his vitriol. Shame on Them.— L’Omerta Abiding Siciliano 🇮🇹 (@L’Omerta Abiding Siciliano 🇮🇹) 1497899560.0
Rest in Peace dearest Nabra Hassanen! The Racism & Hatred spewed by Fascists GOP is given Power&Recognition under T… https://t.co/e1G1N4ekS6— Califgal49 (@Califgal49) 1497913637.0
This hate & violence must end. Trump must publicly & openly condemn https://t.co/lUCPPgXwH0 In Peace, Nabra Hassane… https://t.co/T3f6UYlBQR— Lynne Purcell (@Lynne Purcell) 1497907155.0
The number of hate crimes in U.S. and fatalities has skyrocketed since the election of Donald Trump. Add I7 yr old Nabra Hassanen to list! pic.twitter.com/lDB1DLeRiT
— Mr. Reynolds (@melreynoldsU) June 19, 2017
ABC News later reported that law enforcement believes the murder was as a result of "road rage."