Three transgender women were brutally robbed and assaulted on Hollywood Boulevard early Monday, while bystanders mocked them and police drove past without stopping.
The Los Angeles Police Department is calling the incident a hate crime and searching for the suspect, in addition to reviewing its own response to the incident.
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
The LA Times reports: The incident was partially captured on videos that were later reposted to Instagram by the women: social media influencers Eden the Doll, who has 410,000 Instagram followers, and Jaslene Whiterose and Joslyn Flawless, who also have large followings. The videos, which have been viewed extensively online, show a man threatening Flawless with a crowbar as he robs her, and shows him hitting Whiterose over the head with an object. The videos also show bystanders taunting the women and laughing. Police said the man demanded Flawless’ shoes and bracelet as he threatened her with the crowbar, and struck Whiterose with a bottle — all while making “derogatory remarks” about their gender identity.
Flawless wrote on Instagram: “Scariest moment of my life. This is where i was while @edenthedoll and @jaslenewhiterose were crying for help. He held a crow bar to my face and threatened to kill me unless I stripped my shoes off and gave him my jewelry and all my processions. He said if i was trans he would kill me. He then forced me to hold his hand while he looks for my friends to kill them for being trans. Meanwhile men and WOMEN screaming that I’m a man and telling him to beat me. Please help us find them. PLEASE”
More from ABC News: Multiple people were implicated in the attack, but police said they are only seeking one man as a suspect in the case, which is being investigated as a hate crime. The department posted video of the incident that showed the face of the man, but later removed the video due to its disturbing nature. Instead, officials posted screenshots from the video, highlighting the suspect in the hope of tracking him down. Sources with knowledge of the investigation told ABC News that the department believes it knows the identity of the suspect, and that social media users on Instagram and Twitter have also shared tips on the man’s identity.
Watch a report from Los Angeles’ ABC affiliate below.
