Los Angeles police are looking for a large group of bike-riding teenagers who beat up a man in broad daylight after he got out of his car to confront them.
The attack unfolded at the intersection of San Vicente Boulevard and Carrillo Drive in the Carthay neighborhood east of Beverly Hills on Saturday, the Los Angeles Police Department announced in a news release.
The group of 20 to 30 bike riders, believed to be between 16 and 18 years old, kicked and punched the man around 5 p.m., according to witnesses who viewed the attack. The attack was the culmination of a confrontation that began earlier when witnesses say the teens hit the man’s vehicle, police said.
A fight broke out and the driver, outnumbered by the group, fell to the ground where he was punched and kicked, video of the attack showed. The group eventually rode away south on Carrillo Drive after witnesses approached them to try and stop the fight, according to police.
The man was treated by paramedics for minor injuries. He declined to be taken to a hospital, according to police.
This is at least the third time a group of bike-riding teens has had a violent altercation with a driver in Los Angeles in recent months.
In January, a group of teens vandalized a Mercedes-Benz at Wilshire Boulevard and La Brea Avenue after a driver weaved dangerously close to the group while they were riding on Olympic Boulevard.
In August, a driver in downtown L.A. was attacked during a similar encounter. The driver in that video was attacked while he was at a red light after he tried to drive around the group that was riding in the street.
Los Angeles Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, who represents the district, said she was deeply disturbed by this weekend’s attack.
“My heart goes out to the young man who was assaulted and his family, and I’m relieved to hear that he is recovering,” she said in a statement. “LAPD is actively investigating this incident, and while law enforcement has not indicated they think this was a hate crime, any act of violence like this is unacceptable.”
She asked for anyone with information about the attack to contact police.
“I know that this incident has shaken many in our community, and I want to assure you that we take these concerns very seriously. Violence has no place in our city, and those responsible must be held accountable,” she said.
Anyone with information can call the LAPD’s Wilshire Division at (213) 922-8229, or (877) LAPD-24-7 during nonbusiness hours or on weekends.
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