14 DAY TRIAL // A panhandler has fatally stabbed a woman on the Walk of Fame on Tuesday, June 18, with the help of two other transients.
The men were approached by the woman with the intent of having their photo snapped, but they charged for the photo op.
They demanded that she hand over money for the shot and stabbed her when she didn't comply, Daily Mail reported.
At 8:30 p.m., 23-year-old Christine Calderon, of Lynwood, saw a sign displayed by the beggars in which they were asking for money while posting insults and smiley faces.
She was attacked in front of an American Eagle Outfitters store at the corner of Hollywood and Highland complex, KTLA informed.
“The girl was just laying on the ground with blood everywhere. [...] Everyone was trying to help her stop the blood,” describes store employee Monta Cobbin.
Calderon was not alone, she was with a co-worker at the time. However, two of the men held her still and pinned her to a wall.
She was pushed to the floor and stabbed in her mid-section as passers-by witnessed the entire scene.
“She was wearing jeans and I think it was a white tank top and it was covered in blood,” one vendor who did not give his name recalls.
Police have arrested 26-year-old Dustin James Kinnear for the murder, Jason Joel Wolstone, 33, for assault, and Brian Joseph Widdows, 34, for being an accessory.
“Just be aware of your surroundings and be careful. Generally, in my experience as a law enforcement officer, transients don’t like their pictures being taken.
“I’m not saying that’s a cause or reason for anything, but at the end of the day you need to be careful,” LAPD Officer Cleon Joseph warns in a press conference.