Three taco stand employees were pistol-whipped in the face by a group of thieves during back-to-back robberies in Los Angeles’ South Bay neighborhood on Friday evening.
One of the injured victims was taken to a hospital after three to four people walked up to a taco stand where he was working in the city of Torrance, near Torrance Boulevard and Denker Avenue, around 11:40 p.m. and demanded cash. Los Angeles Police Department. They fired one shot in the air, police said, before making off with some company money and driving away in a dark-colored vehicle with no license plates and tinted windows. It was the first in a series of four robberies that evening.
Within an hour, police said they targeted three other taco stands, all within three miles of each other.
The suspects all remained at large the next morning, and the LAPD has described them only as men. They were all wearing black clothing and their faces were hidden by black face coverings, police said.
The second taco stand they robbed was in the Harbor Gateway South area, near 190th Street and Normandie Avenue, police said. They went to the business about 11:52 p.m., police said, hitting another employee in the face with a gun before stealing money from the business and fleeing the scene. They later targeted another stand, in Gardena, and stole money from the street vendor near 182nd Street and Western Avenue before robbing a fourth and final taco stand in Torrance, according to police.
During the latest robbery, which took place around 12:20 p.m., the robbers pistol-whipped another worker, leaving his face bloodied. First responders treated him at the scene.
No other details have been released by law enforcement as the investigation and search for the suspects continues.