E-bike gang allegedly assaults 60-year old male in Hermosa Beach
by Laura Garber
Hermosa Beach Police have arrested two suspects on charges of felony assault for an alleged e-bike gang beating of a 56-year-old man on Friday night, November 21, at 11th Court, and The Strand, near the man’s home.
A Tuesday Nov. 25 press release, posted on the City website, and HBPD social media, says the assault’s “ongoing investigation has determined that the November 21 incident was not a targeted assault and that the resident walked past his intended destination to initiate contact with the juveniles.”
Multiple surveillance videos, posted with the City and HBPD press release show five to six minors assaulting a man identified by police as being in his 60s. Police have not released the identity of the victim, who was carrying home a pizza from a nearby restaurant when he was assaulted.
“There is currently no evidence indicating that this was a premeditated attack by the juveniles, and detectives have determined that the item the victim was struck with in the video was a cardboard pizza box,” HBPD’s press release stated.
“The victim has been released from the hospital and spoke with HBPD officers on Monday,” the HBPD press release states.
The HBPD has spoken to the parents of one the juveniles on the e-bikes “who contacted HBPD after seeing their child on videos of the assault that are circulating on social media,” according to the press release.
Matt Terrill, who lives near where the assault took place, told Fox11 he witnessed the attack.
“I realized it was a bunch of teenagers attacking one person,” Terrill told Fox11 reporter Matthew Seedorff.
Surveillance footage shown on Fox11 shows minors on e-bikes stomping and kicking the victim while he is on the ground.
“He’s dead, he’s dead,” a minor can be heard saying on surveillance footage, while standing over the motionless victim. The juveniles can then be seen leaving the scene.
Fox11 reported Terrill watched surveillance footage after viewing the attack.
He said the video showed, “They met up here five minutes before and they were talking about doing something, they wanted to do something, they wanted to get someone,” Terrill said to Fox11. “They come up to the victim and they say ‘Hey I want some pizza.’ As the victim is talking to them the rest of the kids surround him, as if they planned it.”
On his Facebook page Terrill posted a text he sent Hermosa Police Detective Nico DiGenova, who is investigating the incident, in response to the department’s Tuesday press release.
“The statement just now by HBPD is a disgrace, you blamed the victim and minimized an attempted murder with the pizza box comment,” Terrill’s text reads. “Even if you twist this around and say the victim somehow started it, the kids still committed an assault when they hit him after saying he’s dead.”
Following Fox11’s interview with Terrill, Redondo Beach resident Hart Cardozo told the station he was attacked in Hermosa Beach on Pier and Hermosa Avenues by an e-bike gang on Tuesday, Oct. 28.
Cardozo told Fox11 the teens surrounded his car, and slashed his tires. When he got out of the vehicle they struck him in the head.
According to the Fox11 report, Cardozo required 14 staples in his head.
“When I saw [the Friday night attack] on the news, I said enough is enough. People need to know my story… they need to report it. If this is going on in the community and you’re not talking about it, it needs to come out,” Cardozo told Fox11.
Resident concerns over juvenile e-bikers’ traffic violations and aggressive behavior were discussed at a public safety forum convened by Mayor Rob Saemann on Thursday, Nov. 13.
Chief Landon Phillips, who participated in the forum, said HBPD partnered last year with Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach in a task force for e-bike enforcement.
He also noted the City Council enacted an urgency ordinance last year to enable his department to impound juveniles’ e-bikes for traffic violations, and to increase e-bike violations to up to $1,000.
“Since the urgency ordinance took effect, we’ve issued 33 citations for reckless riding,” Chief Phillips said. “Overall we’ve issued 40 citations this year.”
Detective Dalton Blumenfeld told the audience, “Everyone has heard a lot about the Goons and Redondo Beach Killers (RBK,)… Our goal is to hold them accountable… Whether we need to file criminal charges against them, or just get restitution and also get them help and resources.”
Blumenfeld said he hopes to “make them members of society when they become adults and get them on the right track and stop this behavior.”
Mayor Saemann proposed hiring contract code enforcement officers to issue tickets for e-bike traffic violations. The Mayor did not respond by press time to Easy Reader’s request for comment on the Friday night assault.
At the public safety forum, an unidentified resident asked Chief Phillips what actions adults can take in response to a threat from minors on e-bikes, which he said happened to him earlier this year.
“If it gets physical, is an adult allowed to respond physically to a minor,” he asked.
The man cited a Redondo Beach incident last year in which a man whose girlfriend was harassed by juvenile e-bikers was sued for fighting with one of the e-bikers.
“That’s a very dangerous question,” Chief Phillips responded. “If anything is escalating and it’s close to getting physical, call the police.”
Chief Phillips recommended people try to walk away first.
“But at some point if you cannot walk away and it’s beyond verbal and there’s any type of assault towards you, and it doesn’t have to be a fist or a kick, it can be somebody throwing something, you have a right to defend yourself.”
He cautioned that adult victims can quickly turn into the perceived perpetrator when minors are involved.
“If they are attacking you and you defend yourself, and defending yourself does include striking back, that’s okay. The fact they are a minor isn’t going to take away your right to defend yourself.”
“I respect what you’re saying but I don’t think it works out that way,” the resident said. “The assumption is that the adult is at fault no matter what.” ER