WEST COVINA — Police Thursday released video footage of a the beating and robbery of a female gas station attendant in hopes of tracking down the attacker.
The attack and robbery took place just after 6 p.m. Sept. 23 at a 76 gas station at 206 N. Vincent Ave., just south of the 10 Freeway, according to West Covina police Cpl. Rudy Lopez. The clerk, a 50-year-old woman, suffered significant injuries in the assault but was expected to recover.
Based on the unprovoked violence displayed by the robber, police were eager to catch up with him, Lopez said.
“We want to catch him before he hurts someone else,” the corporal said.
The entire incident was captured on tape by a store surveillance camera.
The man pulled up to the gas station in a dark green, 1990s car, possible a Honda Accord, and posed as a customer wanting to buy cigarettes before the clerk was “brutally attacked,” police said in a written statement.
As the clerk approach the cigarette display case, the robber can be seen going behind the counter with the clerk, brandishing what officials described as a knife and demanding cash, police said.
“Before she could comply, the suspect begins striking the victim’s face several times with his fist, and then again the the (gas) station telephone,” according to the police statement.
The woman ultimately managed to open the register for the robber, officials said. He helped himself to a large amount of cash and was last seen driving north on Vincent Avenue.
After other avenues of investigation were exhausted, police released the video, along with still images showing the robber’s face, to the public in hopes of generating leads, Lopez said.
Anyone who spots the robber is advised to call 9-1-1 and not approach him.
Police described the attacker as a white man between 30 and 40 years old, 5 feet 8 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall, with blond hair, a mustache and a goatee. He wore a baseball cap, a dark-colored short-sleeve shirt, light-colored pants and dark sunglasses.
Anyone with information is asked to call West Covina police at 626-939-8557. Tips can also be submitted to investigators anonymously by leaving a message at the West Covina Police Department’s 24-hour anonymous tip line at 626-939-8688.
SURVEILLANCE images and video courtesy of the West Covina Police Department
