Enraged By $6 Hot Dog, Mans Beats Women While LA Crowd Watches

LOS ANGELES, CA — A man, irate over the cost of a $6 street dog, brutally beat two women who tried to stop him from berating a Los Angeles street vendor, according to police

Los Angeles police released cellphone video footage Tuesday of the man repeatedly punching the two women during a dispute with a downtown street vendor. A crowd of onlookers can be seen watching, but no one intervened to stop the attack.

"This guy brutally punched two women at a hotdog stand on Jan. 26 in the area of 6th & Spring," police officials wrote on the LAPD Twitter feed. "Someone knows him and we would like to be one of those people."

Both women had to be hospitalized after the attack.

Sylmar residentArka Oroojian, 30, turned himself inTuesday night hours after cellphone video footage of the incident was splashed across local media stations. He surrendered at the Los Angeles Police Department's Central Station and was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, according to the LAPD. He was being held on $90,000. A witness on his behalf claimed the women egged him on and instigated the fight.

One of the women told NBC4 the assailant was arguing with a vendor over the $6 cost of a hot dog. When the confrontation escalated, another vendor offered the man a free hot dog, but the man continued arguing, prompting the two women to intervene.

"Me and my friend said something like, `Just leave,"' the unidentified woman told the station.

That's when the man turned on the women, swinging at them and knocking them to the ground, according to police. A crowd gathered, but no one tried to stop him.

The father of one of the women posted the video on Facebook and expressed outrage that nobody tried to help them.

"For a crowd of men to sit back and not only watch, but film two girls get beat on by a 6 (foot) 250 lb. guy. My family and I are disgusted to say the least," the man wrote.

He also said once the fight ended and the women were on the ground, "NOBODY even tried to help them up or ask if they were OK. Instead, the people standing around laughed and cheered as if the sight of two small girls getting beat on by a huge 250 lb. man was a sight of entertainment. One of the people watching was a bouncer of the bar this occurred in front of."

Anyone with information was asked to call Detective Gonzalez at (213) 996-1851, or after hours, (213) 486-6606.

City News Service contributed to this report. Photo: LAPD