Santa Monica Beach Murderer Gets 25-To-Life

SANTA MONICA, CA — A Michigan man was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison this month for stabbing a man to death inside a car in a beach parking lot over two years ago, according to police.

Mohamed Abou-Arabi, 25, of Dearborn, Michigan, was convicted in September of first-degree murder for the November 2022 stabbing. He was sentenced earlier this month to 25 years to life in state prison, plus a one-year enhancement for using a knife, according to the Santa Monica Police Department.

Police on Nov. 2, 2022 "responded to Lot 1 North, the beach parking lot just north of the
Pier, for a suspicious circumstances call. A parking attendant noticed a male subject lying motionless in the driver seat and possibly bleeding. The victim had died of stab wounds inflicted by an unknown assailant," police said.

Investigators identified Abou-Arabi as the suspect and arrested him in Michigan in January 2023.

Police said at the time said Abou-Arabi knew the victim, identified by the Santa Monica Daily Press as Mujtaba Anwer Al Ashoor, who is also from Dearborn.

However, authorities say even after the trial they do not know why Abou-Arabi killed Al Ashoor — he refused to provide a motive during the investigation and trial, KTLA reported.