Los Angeles police have finally arrested one of three men suspected of repeatedly assaulting and threatening to kill a 61-year-old transgender convenience store owner. The men attacked her in April and recently attacked her again last weekend, reportedly leaving her with serious injuries and stealing over $30,000 at gunpoint. The men have said that they want to kill her.

Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Chief Jim McDonnell announced on Tuesday that police had apprehended one of the suspects, Samuel Parros. Parros was identified and arrested on May 27, before the latest attack on the trans story owner occurred. Parros now faces a hate crime charge of assault with a deadly weapon with great bodily injury and remains in custody with bail set at $10,000, KTTV reported.

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Trans store owner Sabrina de la Peña said the problem with her main attacker began on April 8 when he tried to flirt with her in her shop. He reportedly became angry and began attacking her when she told him to leave, pushing her onto the floor, sexually assaulting her, and then threatening to kill her after discovering her trans identity. He returned the next day with a skateboard, which he used to beat her — though she grabbed it away from him. He also returned later the same day with two accomplices who pepper-sprayed her, doused her with an unknown liquid, and used a Taser on her.

The main attacker has since returned to de la Peña’s store multiple times with other people, “committing several hate crimes,” KABC reported, including hitting her with a skateboard and pepper-spraying her.

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After attacking de la Peña on Saturday, the men fled before police arrived. Officers were unable to locate the men. She has operated the store in the city’s Westlake neighborhood for nearly 30 years, but says that this is the first time she has ever felt unsafe doing so.

During his Tuesday comments, LAPD Chief McDonnell said, “Our heart goes out to her for what she’s been through with five incidents in the course of roughly a month. We take these crimes very seriously. We have a lot of resources focused on taking these individuals into custody and holding them accountable for what they’ve done.”

“I think he hate transgender women because he tell me many times… ‘I’m gonna kill you,'” she said of her main attacker.

The Los Angeles Police Department has asked for the public’s assistance in identifying and apprehending the suspects. Anyone with information is urged to contact LAPD Rampart Division Detectives at (213) 484-3495.

“I want to ask the community to help me find those guys, help the police catch those guys. If not, they’re going to kill me,” she explained. “I cannot work because I only thinking he going to come back.”

In 2024, 36 transgender and gender-expansive people were killed nationwide, according to the Human Rights Campaign; most were women of color. The actual number of trans and gender-expansive victims may be higher but may have gone unreported due to an unwillingness to contact police or as the result of misgendering by legal authorities, victim families or the press.

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