An 18-year-old woman was knocked to the ground, strangled and robbed of a gold chain inside a Hollywood 7-Eleven, in an attack captured by the store’s CCTV.
Destiny Valderrama had just left a quinceañera with two friends when the group stopped for snacks at the shop near Las Palmas Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard shortly after midnight on Saturday, August 29.
Los Angeles police said two suspects followed the women into the store. Valderrama said one of them seized her by the hair from behind and pulled her down near an ATM before striking her and choking her until she lost consciousness.
She said she could not remember how long she was unconscious. Her injuries included bruising to her arms, elbows and the back of her neck.
Hollywood 7-Eleven robbery remains under investigation
Valderrama’s two friends attempted to intervene, but one was dragged across the floor while the other was pushed into the aisles. Neither was robbed, and the attackers took only the chain and pendant worn by Valderrama.
Her mother, Elizabeth Ortiz, said she initially believed the jewellery had simply been snatched. She said she realised the seriousness of the incident when her daughter returned home bruised and shaken.
Ortiz later viewed the surveillance footage and said it showed the attackers attempting to use the chain to choke her daughter. The chain was too thick to break, she said.
Valderrama said employees and customers were inside the shop during the assault. She alleged that, despite repeatedly asking staff to call the police, the group was removed from the store instead.
“I really thought it was just going to be it for me right there on that ground,” she said, describing the attack as entirely unexpected.
She said the chain had been given to her at baptism and had been in her possession since she was a baby.
The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that two people were involved in a robbery inside a business in the 6700 block of Hollywood Boulevard. The suspects fled and no arrests had been made at the time of the latest update.
Police have not released descriptions of the pair or said how they left the scene. Anyone who recognises them is asked to contact the LAPD’s Hollywood Division on 213-972-2971.
