After a couple was brutally attacked following an Elton John concert in Los Angeles, authorities arrested an individual connected to the beating.
The investigation is ongoing after a viral video was shared on social media showing the alarming occurrence that took place last week in the parking lot of the Dodger Stadium.
The couple is in their 60s and their daughter, Nicole, spoke to Fox11 about the attack.
“They were so excited to go have a random little date night, so they went to the Elton John concert,” Nicole said. “They had a really nice night and they wanted to beat the crowd so they left 10-15 minutes before the concert ended.”
“They were in their car exiting Dodger Stadium and traffic got crazy out there. People were walking around all the cars, so they were in line to exit. A group of people walked around their car and they both heard this loud bang and someone had hit my dad’s mirror on his Tahoe,” Nicole said.
Nicole explained that her father exited the car to find out what had happened.
“He looked and he was thinking his mirror was hanging off, and he looked at the people and said, ‘Who hit my mirror,’ and this group of about six people turned around,” Nicole said. “A female was like ‘I did,’ and she was intoxicated and witnesses claim that she swung [at] my dad first and he went to block. The last thing he remembers is these three or four guys just started hitting him all at the same time.”
The man, identified as Jamie, told KABC-TV, “Next thing I know, big gorilla’s coming at me. This guy was wailing on me. I fought back but I don’t think I did anything.”
“They got me on the ground, next thing I know I see other legs. People pummeling me. My wife came, she said she was pulling people off of me,” he added.
Nicole’s mother got out of the car once she saw that her husband was being beat up by a group of men.
“Her instinct was to get out and help him, and as my mom’s trying to pull men off of him, she was grabbed by the back of the head by a female in that group. Before she knew it, the gentleman in the black shirt, black backwards hat (as seen in the video), basically football tackles my mom and my mom just remembers flying and that’s it,” Nicole said.
Witnesses said that Nicole’s mom smashed her head so badly on the ground that they heard her head make impact and everyone was sure she had cracked her skull.
“I felt like I was rammed and thrown and my head hit the pavement, and so I blacked out,” Nicole’s mother told KCAL9. She added that no one had tried to help her husband as he lay on the ground passed out.
“My mom blacked out and when she came to, she was looking around and no one was helping them and she looked and my dad was lifeless on the floor, blacked out as well,” she said.
One person was helping her parents, but the man had also been recording the incident on his phone. When the assailants realized he was recording, they attacked him, as well, and broke his device.
“As social media blew up, we were contacted today [by police] so we did give our part of the story so hopefully justice can be served and the legal system doesn’t fail us but already we’re being told LAPD is saying this started from a fender bender so from the get go, the story’s already wrong,” Nicole added.
The man is recovering from several injuries impacting his head, ankle, back, and one of his ears. The woman was able to go home from the hospital on the night of the attack, and both victims had broken bones and brain injuries.
Crime in Los Angeles has been an increasing problem and was a major factor in the Los Angeles mayoral race, prompting support for former Republican billionaire Rick Caruso, who was ultimately unsuccessful against Democratic Representative Karen Bass.
“The City of Los Angeles is home to entertainment of many kinds. It is always tragic when acts of violence stain the public’s feeling of safety in attending such events,” LAPD officer Rosario Cervantes said in a statement. “The Los Angeles Police Department is committed to restoring the public’s sense [of] safety and seeking justice in this instance and always.”