Moment Taco Bell customer stabs wheelchair user, 82, in the neck as he’s eating

An elderly wheelchair user dining at a Taco Bell restaurant was stabbed in the neck from behind by a younger customer.

The unprovoked attack happened at the fast food joint in Los Angeles’ Mar Vista neighborhood, according to police.

Surveillance video shows a man entering the eatery with a red skateboard and looking around. Within seconds, the man approaches an 82-year-old customer sitting at a table unwrapping an order and pulls an object from the right pocket on his jacket.

The suspect uses the knife to stab the elderly man once in the neck and again on the shoulder.

An unprovoked attack on an elderly customer at Taco Bell was caught on surveillance video on October 3 (Pictures: Los Angeles Police Department)

Police responded to the restaurant at 12011 Venice Boulevard around 7pm on October 3. The elderly victim, who has not been identified, sustained severe injuries and was transported to a nearby hospital. He was later in stable condition and expected to recover, police said.

The suspect, wearing glasses, a black jacket, khaki pants and a black backpack, then fled. He is described as being in his 20s or 30s, between 5-feet-1 and 5-feet-6 and weighing about 130 pounds. He appeared bald and with several tattoos including one by his left and a big one on the back of his head.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the police department.

A suspect with a red skateboard approached the victim from behind within seconds of entering the Taco Bell (Picture: Los Angeles Police Department)

The suspect stabbed the victim in the neck and shoulder (Picture: Los Angeles Police Department)

Los Angeles has seen an uptick in crime in recent years. There were 24,450 violent crimes recorded through October 10, up 3.9% from the same time period in 2021, according the police department.

The unprovoked assault is not the only recent incident of an elderly customer being attacked at a fast food restaurant.

In August, a Wendy’s worker was caught on surveillance footage walking around the register and punching a 67-year-old customer who had complained about his order. The victim was licking a Frosty and unaware when the employee, Antoine Kendrick, 35, knocked him unconscious to the ground.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

A suspect stabbed an elderly Taco Bell customer in the neck and shoulder unprovoked.