Police were hunting for a man accused of beating and trying to sexually assault an 80-year-old woman. Jane Yamamoto reports for the NBC4 News at 11 on Wednesday, June 22, 2016.
After an 80-year-old woman fought off a man who beat her and attempted to sexually assault her in her Hollywood apartment, Los Angeles police Wednesday were seeking the public's help in identifying the man accused in the attack.
The man entered the woman’s apartment building about 4 a.m. Saturday at the Hollywood Knickerbocker Apartments near the Pantages Theatre, the Los Angeles Police Department said.
The accused attacker was caught on surveillance video pressing buttons on the call box until somebody buzzed him in.
Somehow, the man made it past a security guard in the lobby of the senior subsidized housing complex.
He knocked on the victim's door and pushed his way in when she opened it, police said. The woman lives alone.
He then beat her and tried to sexually assault her, LAPD said.
"He attempted to sexually assault her and she fought back - he became aggressive and significantly beat her up," LAPD Captain Matt Blake said.
The man eventually ran away, and the woman managed to get help at a neighbor's apartment. She was critically injured, police said.
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The attack was random and the woman had never seen the attacker before, LAPD Captain William Hayes said.
The break-in had residents on edge as police posted a flier on the door, warning seniors of the attack.
"Oh, that's indefensible," Philip Park, a resident at the apartment building, said. "He's the scum of the earth."
Detectives with the Robbery-Homicide Division described the man as a 25-year-old, 6-feet tall and weighing 220 pounds. Anyone who spots him is encouraged to call LAPD at at (213) 486-6910.
