Suspects armed with "assault rifle" rob group of victims outside West Hollywood restaurant
Police are searching for a pair of suspects who were caught on camera Tuesday evening robbing a trio of people outside of a restaurant in West Hollywood.
The surveillance footage, captured near La Boheme restaurant on Santa Monica Boulevard, shows a group of suspects, one of whom appears to be armed with an apparent rifle, approaching two victims as they were leaving the restaurant.
A statement from Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department detailed that a male suspect was armed with "what appeared to be an assault rifle," and two female suspects were armed with a handgun. Typically, an assault rifle refers to an AR-15 or AK-47 style rifle.
"One of the victims was struck in the face with a handgun by the suspects," the statement said. "A man walking on the sidewalk interrupted the robbery and the suspects demanded his property and he complied."
The suspects took a wallet, jewelry and cash from the victims.
Anyone with additional information was asked to contact detectives at (310) 358-4033.
According to crime statistics from the department, as a whole violent crime from Jan.1 to March 31 has dropped by about 18% in the West Hollywood area — which includes the city and the unincorporated area around it — compared to the same time period in 2022. Only one category classified as violent crime, rape, increased. So far this year, there have been eight reported rapes within the city limits of West Hollywood. In 2022, there were five within the same time frame.
Unincorporated parts of West Hollywood did see an increase in violent crime compared to last year. In total, 4 violent crimes were reported to deputies compared to three in 2022.
Property crimes saw a similar trend. Through March 31, property crimes dropped by almost 11% in the West Hollywood area. However, in the unincorporated parts property crime increased from 21 to 48, a spike of 129%.
