Last Updated on February 17, 2022
An 80-year-old California man has died after sustaining life-threatening injuries during a brutal beating and robbery that took place at grocery bathroom.
Roberto Flores Lopez was brutally attacked July 8 inside the bathroom of Superior Grocers in the 1000 block of East Avenue J, near 10th Street, Lancaster, reported Fox LA.
Lopez was found on the floor by a passerby entering the restroom, having sustained horrific injuries and had his wallet stolen, authorities confirmed. His family says that his assailant continued to kick him after he had handed over his wallet while he was on the ground.
Relatives confirmed that Lopez had passed away on Wednesday morning from his injuries that included a broken nose, broken jaw, and several broken ribs.
Damaris Wade, 22, is currently held in custody, turning himself in days after the attack when authorities circulated a picture of him and his girlfriend, 33-year-old Tamika White, who was at the time suspected to be his accomplice, on social media.
Wade and White were caught on surveillance footage moments after the brutal beating and robbery. Wade was wearing a distinctive black face mask with white fangs as he left the premises.
Charges for one felony count of accessory after the crime were later dropped against Wade’s girlfriend White as a potential suspect. White was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon in 2014, but her charge was dismissed. No reason was given in court.
Wade a.k.a. “Papa Cill,” however, was initially charged with attempted murder, elder abuse with infliction of injury and second-degree robbery. The initial charges reflected that Wade had inflicted great bodily injury on a victim 70 or older and that he has a prior conviction for robbery in 2016, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, per The AV Times.
Prosecutors claim that, as things currently stand, Wade could face up to 25-years-to-life in state prison, depending on the charges Wade will now face in light of Lopez’s death.
Both families have called for for “unity within our community” after the atrocious assault.
