Man's Thumb Chopped Off, Skull Fractured in Machete Attack Near Downtown LA

A 43-year-old man had his thumb slashed off  and suffered cuts to his head and arms when he was attacked by a group of men who had a machete, authorities said.

Detectives are investigating the attack as an attempted murder, Lt. Hayley Smith of the Los Angeles Police Department said Sunday afternoon. Officers initially called it an attempted robbery.

The man's left thumb was cut off and he suffered a fractured skull and severe injuries to both his arms and wrists in the Sunday morning attack, according to an LAPD representative.

Four men allegedly assaulted the man around 12:30 a.m. near 11th Street and Burlington Avenue in the Pico-Union neighborhood west of downtown Los Angeles, police said.

Surveillance video taken a block away shows the man crossing in the street before collapsing at a street corner.

Police said the men were trying to rob the man of his bike and money before they began to assault him with a machete. A police official initially gave the victim's age as 18, but officers later corrected that figure.

The injured man was taken to a hospital trauma center in serious condition, but was expected to survive, police said.

The four men, reportedly between the ages of 18 and 20 years old, left the bike and wallet behind and have not been apprehended. Police said the assault did not appear to be gang-related.

City News Service contributed to this report.

Contact Us