Deputies investigate armed robbery outside popular West Hollywood restaurant
A recent string of armed robberies has some West Hollywood residents worried about their safety.
"These things are happening with increasing frequency," said resident Alan Steinberg. "They're more serious and more dangerous. There are more people involved."
Steinberg said he was not surprised to hear about another robbery outside the popular celebrity hot spot, Craig's, Thursday morning.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said two robbers dressed in dark clothing and masks approached two victims and stole a watch. Deputies said the two thieves ran into a white car with a getaway driver and left the area.
No one was injured in the incident, but some witnesses were shaken — including reality star Hayley De Sola Pinto. She said that while she was unharmed the entire ordeal was frightening and changed her perspective about how safe she feels in the city.
This robbery comes after another scary encounter last month along the 800 block of Larrabee Street. Investigators said the trio of armed robbers pulled out handguns and a rifle while threatening their victim.
The three men dug through the man's pockets before taking his cell phone and wallet and beating him to the ground.
"I used to go for an after-dinner walk every night," Steinberg said. "I haven't done that in probably two years."
In March, deputies said a man approached a woman while she was on a bus bench on Santa Monica Boulevard, forced her into a nearby parking garage and sexually assaulted her.
In April, two men were robbed with what appeared to be assault rifles behind La Boheme. The incident, combined with vandalism and other break-ins frustrated the owner so much he closed his popular restaurant for one day to talk with city council about his safety concerns.
While the city has implemented unarmed safety ambassadors and rolled back on cutting the number of deputies on the streets, people living here it's just not enough.
"We have a District Attorney whose policy caused these things," said Steinberg. "We let people out of jail. We don't have bail. We have prioritized many crimes. When you deprioritize any crime it all becomes deprioritized."