DeLAND, Fla. – A 43-year-old man with physical disabilities was attacked, beaten and robbed by two men who remain on the loose, DeLand police said.
The attack happened around 5:15 p.m. Sunday outside 1 First Class Barber Shop, at 120 E. New York Ave.
“The way they attacked him and took off. It was horrendous,” Christopher Vest, a barber who witnessed the event said.
The victim called police about 40 minutes after the attack, saying two men beat him up and stole his cash and car keys, authorities said.
DeLand police said surveillance video from a nearby business shows a man in a white T-Shirt punching the victim several times. A second assailant approached the victim and rummaged through the man’s pockets, police said.
Vest said he saw the attack happen.
“The perpetrators were sitting there for at least 30 minutes at least watching him,” Vest said. “He (one of the perpetrators) asked him if the barbershop was opened first and then hit him with brass knuckles and then once he was down on the ground, the other suspect came up, grabbed a hold of his stuff and then took off.”
The culprits then ran south through a parking lot, according to police.
The victim, who suffered a broken nose and two black eyes, was admitted to AdventHealth DeLand and was later released, police said.
“He doesn’t deserve this. I don’t think anybody deserves this,” Vest said. “He’s a very very kind person and would do anything he could for anybody and that’s what makes it kind of even more difficult to sit here and think about it. To beat up on somebody who’s just trying to earn a living, it’s ridiculous.”
One of the assailants was wearing a white T-shirt and dark pants. The other was wearing a dark hoodie and gray sweatpants. Officers are asking for the public’s help in identifying the two.
Authorities say the victim has since been released from the hospital. First Class Barber Shop is offering a $500 reward for information leading to an arrest.
Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call DeLand police at 386-626-7422.