Two masked gunmen pistol-whipped Los Angeles store owner Ronen Vered and stole a Rolex watch worth roughly $50,000 right in front of customers, leaving him bleeding from the head before he was rushed to a hospital. The attackers fled the scene, and as of the latest report, no arrests have been made and their identities remain unknown.
According to JFeed, the attackers held a pistol to Vered's head and struck him forcefully with the weapon before seizing the luxury watch. The assault happened in broad daylight and unfolded in front of shocked customers who were inside the store at the time, the outlet reports. Video footage released after the incident showed Vered bleeding from his head and receiving initial medical treatment before he was taken to the hospital, per the same report.
Vered, who has lived in Los Angeles for about 20 years and is described as a well-known figure in the local Jewish community, told JFeed he had noticed a suspicious vehicle parked near his store and watching the premises shortly before the attack. After taking the watch, the robbers fled quickly, and the report notes that their identities are unknown and no arrests have been reported.
Investigators Rule Out Hate Crime Motive
Police do not suspect the crime was a hate crime with a nationalist motive, the outlet's report states, and investigators are treating the incident as a standard robbery rather than something tied to Vered's identity or community standing. Recent violent robberies have also occurred in major cities around the world.
The attack echoes a similar nighttime robbery earlier this month in West Hollywood, where actor Keegan Allen said two armed men robbed him outside the Laurel Supply grocery store. As reported by NBC Los Angeles, the two attackers demanded Allen's watch and struck him in the head with a handgun before taking off, according to authorities. The station separately reported on two other daytime West Hollywood robberies involving luxury watches and jewelry that happened less than two hours apart, though neither of those victims was hurt.
Part of a Broader Pattern Across LA
Violent robberies targeting high-end watches are not new to the region. LAPD Chief Michel Moore has said a trend of robberies targeting luxury watches in Mar Vista, Venice, Mid-Wilshire, the Melrose shopping district, Culver City, West Hollywood and Beverly Hills is part of a broader uptick in robberies, with more incidents ending in gunfire, according to the Los Angeles Times. That same department previously arrested two men connected to a string of armed robberies across the region targeting people wearing Rolexes and other high-end watches.
Suspects in these schemes often follow victims from stores or restaurants before striking in isolated areas, according to ABC7, which reported that robbers typically wait for victims to walk to their vehicles or reach a secluded spot before moving in with guns. A separate string of high-end watch robberies and attempted robberies across the region previously had Los Angeles authorities searching for suspects, per KTLA.
Violence Spreading Beyond California
The pattern of violence tied to luxury watch theft has shown up well beyond Los Angeles in recent months. In Philadelphia, four unidentified men robbed a victim's cousin of a Rolex reportedly valued at $25,000 in August, and a 25-year-old man was shot in the leg while trying to defend himself and his relative, according to NBC Philadelphia. In Dallas earlier this week, a masked suspect struck 78-year-old business owner Ismael Arreola in the head with a pistol and stole his necklace, as reported by Fox 4 Dallas.
A prior Rowland Heights case followed a similar script, with two suspects pistol-whipping a man and the woman accompanying him before stealing his Rolex, valued at about $60,000, according to ABC7. Federal prosecutors have also pursued cases tied to organized theft rings targeting high-end timepieces; the Justice Department has said two South American nationals allegedly part of a crime tourism group were charged in connection with the armed robbery of a $1 million watch in Beverly Hills. Watch-related street robberies rose as pandemic restrictions eased and travel resumed.
For now, the circumstances surrounding Vered's attack remain under investigation, with no suspects identified and no arrests reported.
