The Los Angeles City Council approved a $25,000 reward Tuesday for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects in a brutal attack on a transgender woman in Hollywood.
The LAPD released video showing four men approaching Vivian Diego, 22, from behind as she left her job at Beso restaurant around 2:15 a.m. on May 31 near the Hollywood and Ivar Metro station. Apparently a verbal confrontation ensued. Diego tried to walk away but was pursued, pushed to the ground and attacked. From another angle, the video shows the men kicking Diego on the ground.
The suspect who knocked Vivian down was described as a white male between 20 to 25 years old with blond hair. He was wearing a white T-shirt with a “YSL” logo.
The other three suspects are around the same age. They were wearing black shirts and black pants. Authorities are hoping witnesses will help them track down the attackers.
“As you can see in the video, there’s people around, there’s cars driving by, so we’re asking anybody that happened to see this incident to contact us,” said [LAPD Lt. Marc] Reina.
Police are investigating the beating as a hate crime. If you have any information, please call (213) 972-2967 or email [email protected].
Diego spent a week in the hospital suffering from extensive injuries to her face, head and ribs—but was able to talk to KCBS Channel 2 even though her broken jaw is wired shut.