Bert Atienza, 77, died on June 8 after an alleged assault at a Norfolk Walmart the previous day. Surveillance footage shows the attack followed a dispute after a teenage employee allegedly nearly struck Atienza's wife with a shopping cart and threw a can. The teen reportedly called her parents, who then confronted and allegedly attacked Atienza in the store. The parents were arrested and held without bond; their daughter faces juvenile charges.
77-Year-Old Dies After Alleged Beating Inside Norfolk Walmart; Parents Of Teen Worker Arrested
The confrontation reportedly began after an argument over a shopping cart.Photograph: Charles-McClintock Wilson/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Bert Atienza, 77, died from blunt head trauma on June 8 after an alleged assault inside a Walmart in Norfolk, Virginia, the day before, local media report.
Police responded to the store at about 3:20 p.m. on June 7 after a report of an assault. Store surveillance footage captured the incident and shows the confrontation unfolding in an aisle.
The couple had been shopping after spending the morning at church when the dispute began. According to Atienza's wife, Josephine, a 17-year-old Walmart employee rode a shopping cart down the aisle and nearly struck her. Words were exchanged, and Josephine told reporters the employee then allegedly threw a can as the couple walked away.
The teen reportedly called her parents, identified by authorities as Travis White, 44, and Erika Mitchell, 42. Surveillance video appears to show the parents later locating the couple in the store and attacking Atienza while their daughter watched.
According to police accounts and footage, the elderly shopper was shoved from behind, grabbed and punched, forced into a shelving unit, and fell to the floor where one of the suspects allegedly kicked him. Bystanders are seen moving away as the assault continued.
"My husband was still able to speak, he said, 'Help me get up,' but I told him, 'No, you're bleeding. Your mouth is bleeding. Ambulance is coming,'" Josephine told WTKR. "I look at him again. He has no more consciousness."
Atienza was found unresponsive and taken to a hospital, where he died the following day. Medical officials ruled his death a homicide caused by blunt force trauma.
Travis White and Erika Mitchell were arrested days later and are being held without bond in the Norfolk jail. Their 17-year-old daughter faces charges including assault and battery, aggravated malicious wounding, and conspiracy to commit a felony; she is in the Norfolk juvenile detention center. Authorities have not released her name because she is a minor.
The investigation is ongoing and charges are allegations; no conviction has been reported.
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