2 Children Hurt by Firebombing Hospitalized

SHERMAN OAKS — Two children seriously burned as the result of a firebomb tossed into their second-floor bedroom window by an unknown assailant remained hospitalized Tuesday. One was in critical condition.

Rafi Moshe, 10--the most seriously injured in the attack early Monday--was in the intensive care unit at Los Angeles County/USC Medical Center, breathing with the aid of a respirator, said Adelaida De La Cerda, a hospital spokeswoman.

The boy, suffering from smoke inhalation, also sustained first-, second- and third-degree burns on about 10% of his body, De La Cerda said.

His sister, Chaya, 9, was listed in fair condition at Childrens Hospital in Los Angeles, said Steve Rutledge, a hospital spokesman.

Arson investigators from the Los Angeles Fire Department questioned neighbors and the children’s family Tuesday but have neither established a motive for the attack nor identified suspects, said Jim Wells, a spokesman for the department.

“We are actively investigating this incident,” Wells said.

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Chaya Moshe, who underwent plastic surgery Monday, suffered first- and second-degree burns on about 10% of her body, primarily her hands and arms, Rutledge said.

“She’s recovering nicely,” he said.

The fire occurred Monday just after 1 a.m. at an apartment complex in the 5000 block of Woodman Avenue when someone threw a Molotov cocktail into the children’s room.

Neighbors reported hearing shattering glass and seeing a dark Nissan sedan hurrying from an alley just below the children’s room.

Rafi escaped into the living room, where his mother, Batsheva Moshe, and a neighbor led him out of the apartment. Chaya jumped out the bedroom window into the arms of three men coaching her from the alley.