A Korean-American man was threatened by a robber in broad daylight in Koreatown, Los Angeles. The suspect held a knife to the man’s head and demanded money even as passersby were watching.
The incident occurred in the parking lot of a building at 3600 Wilshire Boulevard around 1 p.m. on July 30, according to a report to the Korea Daily.
The victim, 66-year-old Steve Lee, who has run an insurance agency in the building for 17 years, said he had returned from lunch and parked his car in the lot as usual.
As he was getting out of his car, he was allegedly approached by a black male described as about 6 feet tall with dyed blond hair. The suspect then pulled a jackknife from his right pocket and held it to Lee’s side, threatening him and saying, “Give me your wallet.”
Stunned by the unexpected incident, Lee quickly pushed the suspect away, closed, and locked the car door. He then honked his horn loudly and yelled, “Police, police!”
After several unsuccessful attempts to force the door open, the suspect cursed at Lee and nonchalantly walked out of the parking lot.
“I was so shocked and frightened,” Lee said, adding, “I can’t believe this happened to me when there were so many people around.”
A popular Koreatown restaurant, MDK Noodles, is also known to use the building’s parking lot.
“Since the beginning of this year, a nearby restaurant has also been using the parking lot, and it’s shocking that such a robbery happened in the middle of Koreatown during lunchtime when many people come and go,” Lee said. “I still feel traumatized, like someone will come and stab me, and I can’t sleep.”
“After calling the police, I also informed the building manager and security guard, but they didn’t do anything,” Lee said, pointing out the inadequate response of the building owner.
Although the number of crime incidents in Koreatown in the first half of this year has reached its lowest level in more than a decade, residents say they are not feeling it.
In fact, a spate of robberies has recently occurred in Koreatown. In June, a gunman entered Coin De Rue Bakery and Cafe near 1st Street and Western Avenue, threatened three employees, and robbed them of about $800 in cash before fleeing. Earlier in April, a night security guard was stabbed by a robber at a Korean market in Koreatown.
As of July 22, there have been 110 robberies in the Olympic Police Department’s jurisdiction this year, according to LAPD crime statistics. That’s about one robbery every two days. The station has the seventh-highest number of robberies out of the LAPD’s 21 stations this year.
BY SUAH JANG, HOONSIK WOO [jang.suah@koreadaily.com]
