On Saturday, April 19 at 2:49 p.m., at least one member of a group of “dozens of juveniles on bicycles” allegedly committed a robbery in the USC Village, according to an email sent by the USC Department of Public Safety (DPS) sent to USC students. According to the email, the victim was punched in the face and their property was stolen.
Just an hour and a half later, a large group of young bikers got into an argument with an unnamed victim who was inside his vehicle in the parking lot of the Ralphs grocery store on South Vermont Avenue, near USC’s campus. The adolescents started throwing rocks at the victim, which damaged the window of his vehicle, according to David Cuellar, a public information officer for the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD).
An assault and deadly weapon report, as well as a vandalism report, were taken at the scene by LAPD. The investigation is ongoing.
An Annenberg reporter on the scene saw the group of bikers on USC’s Greek Row earlier in the day. The group threw a dog food bowl up in the air and were later seen approaching a house before running away when a man inside the house started yelling at them to leave. DPS patrol cars later followed where the bikers had been.
A website was created with the intention of finding out more information about the bikers. The website features anonymously submitted images and videos of the group of bikers.
The website also features a list of reports of crimes involving groups of young bikers that features a safety notice: “If you encounter these teenage assailants: avoid engaging or provoking them, film them if you can safely do so, leave the area immediately, call 911 and report it as: 30-40 teenagers on bikes, engaging in violent behavior.”
According to DPS Assistant Chief David Carlisle, students can take safety precautions.
“I would recommend that if students see them, that they do not engage them, do not make eye contact. Travel in groups of friends. You’re less likely to be harassed if you’re with a group than walking alone,” he said.
“They have forcibly taken electric scooters from students, or they’ve taken phones from students, and just this past weekend, they battered a student in the parking lot at the Ralph’s market on Vermont,” Carlisle said.
“Our goal is to work with LAPD in order to keep them out of the campus community, but it’s difficult, because they’re anonymous, typically, and when they are captured, they are juvenile, so it’s unlikely they would remain in custody for any length of time,” said Carlisle.
Carlisle also described the process that DPS and USC uses to survey the area around USC.
“We have a 24/7 live monitor camera surveillance system that will alert us if we see the juveniles approaching. They often are riding in large groups on major highways like Figueroa or Jefferson or Exposition Boulevard, typically disregarding traffic rules,” he said.
“If we’re able to see them coming, then we typically try to shut down that portion of campus where they might want to enter, and that means closing gates and posting officers and or security ambassadors at those dates until they pass.”
Correction: A previous version of the story listed April 19 as a Saturday.