Sheriff’s deputies in Lakewood Thursday were investigating the attempted robbery and assault of two men who were attacked while walking home after playing “Pokemon Go” on their cellphones.
The two men were walking near South Street and Clark Avenue around 2:40 a.m. Wednesday when a tan four-door vehicle pulled up alongside them, according to a news release from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
A black man in the passenger seat got out the car and walked toward the victims holding a handgun and demanded their property, the release stated.
One of the victims charged the would-be robber and began to struggle for the gun, the Sheriff’s Department stated.
During the struggle, the victim was hit multiple times in the face with the handgun by the assailant.
The attacker ran back to the car, possibly a Chevrolet Impala, which then sped toward the victims in an alleged attempt to run them over, the release stated.
The victims managed to get out-of-the-way of the car without getting hit.
The attack came just two hours after another “Pokemon Go” player was stabbed by multiple attackers in Schweitzer Park in Anaheim, according to the OC Register.
Sgt. Luis Correa with the Anaheim Police Department described the attackers as being between 18 and 24 years old, the newspaper reported.
“We encourage people to have fun, but you should be aware of your surroundings and don’t lose track of what’s going on around you,” Correa told the Register.
The suspect in the Lakewood attack was described as a black man between 18 and 25 years old, 5 foot 10 inches tall with a thin build and short hair. There was no description available of the driver.
Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Lakewood Station’s Detective Borges at 562-623-3500. If you prefer to provide information anonymously, you may call “Crime Stoppers” by dialing 800-222-TIPS (8477), or texting the letters TIPLA plus your tip to CRIMES (274637), or by using the website at http://lacrimestoppers.org/.
