Actor Keegan Allen allegedly robbed at gunpoint, "West Hollywood is not safe anymore"
Actor Keegan Allen posted an Instagram video Thursday night with a bloodied face, saying he was robbed at gunpoint and knifepoint in a grocery store parking lot by two men who threatened to kill him for his watch.
"West Hollywood is not safe anymore," the "Pretty Little Liars" actor said in the video as he walked through the Laurel Supply lot and asked someone, "Will you call the police?"
He said the men were wearing masks and took his watch. "These two dudes hit me in the head and pointed a gun at me with a knife, and then took off," Allen said in the video, which also played surveillance footage of the violent incident.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said that around 9:05 p.m., deputies responded to the 8400 block of Santa Monica Boulevard after a robbery call.
The incident report mirrored what Allen said in the video: two men dressed in black clothing approached the victim, demanding his watch and bracelet at gun and knife point.
"The suspects obtained the victim's watch and fled the scene in an unknown vehicle. The victim sustained a laceration to his forehead," LASD wrote in a statement.
Allen was medically evaluated by the Los Angeles County Fire Department at the scene but was not transported to the hospital.
Shoppers at the organic grocery store where it happened Thursday night say they aren't shocked; they're sad.
"I don't have a watch on anymore because you can't wear a watch anymore; it's shocking," said shopper Max Fowles.
On social media, many commented on the lack of a back door to the store by the parking lot, but shoppers say two doors today are too difficult to monitor.
But as alarming as the video is, the sheriff's department says robberies in West Hollywood are declining.
Through the end of August, 49 robberies were reported, compared to 62 in the same time frame last year. That is a 21 percent drop, the agency says.
The City of West Hollywood said on Friday that Sheriff's deputies and the city's security ambassadors will conduct additional patrols.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to contact West Hollywood Station detectives at (310) 855-8850.
The City of West Hollywood issued the following statement:
"West Hollywood is a compassionate and engaged community, and news of this violent robbery is deeply upsetting and unsettling. The City wants community members to know that community concerns are heard and taken seriously, and that public safety remains the City's top priority. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is actively investigating this incident, and additional patrols will be conducted by Sheriff's deputies and the City's security ambassadors."
