Gym owner fights off 3 brazen attackers in West Hollywood

Thieves attack amateur boxer in West Hollywood

Three would-be thieves tracked down and attacked a gym owner in broad daylight on the streets of West Hollywood. But the attackers clearly didn't know who they were messing with, as the amateur boxer was able to fight them off.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. - A wild attempted robbery in West Hollywood was caught on camera, and despite three attackers taking just one person, the victim was able to fight all three of them off.

It happened Tuesday. Security footage showed a black Cadillac pulling over on Sunset Boulevard. Seconds later, three masked men jumped out. Another surveillance camera captured the attackers running up on Rocco DiStefano. One of the thieves had a gun.

"I turned around, and I'm looking down the barrel of the pistol," DiStefano said. "They're yelling, ‘Take it off, take it off,’ and at this point, I try to run and I realize I'm running into a corner. The only thing I can think to take off, I'm looking at my Rolex. So I take off my Rolex and I clasp it in my hands and I tell them ‘You’re going to have to take it from me.'"

Security cameras kept rolling. They showed the thieves following DiStefano and his dog around that corner, before knocking him to the ground, punching him in the back of the head and kicking him, all with the gun pointed at him.

But as it turned out, the thieves picked the wrong target that day. DiStefano happens to be an amateur boxer and football player, and he even owns a gym. That's when he said his instincts kicked in. That part, unfortunately, wasn't captured on camera.

DiStefano said he pushed through one of the attackers' legs, and "Was able to tackle the guy in the gray hoodie that's hitting me from behind into the person with the gun, and when I hit him with the gun, both of them fell down."

The attackers ran off, empty-handed, and DiStefano ran into a nearby spa for safety.

"It was just a rush of adrenaline and I just saw my life flash before my eyes, and it’s making me very grateful to be alive," DiStefano said.

His beloved dog Hercules is also okay. DiStefano said he'll keep his watch in a safe going forward. He said the watch was a symbol for him "of how hard I've worked to get to this point — to own a gym, to be where I am," adding that he "picked this location because of the safety."

Authorities are still looking for the three men who attacked DiStefano. West Hollywood deputies said there was a similar robbery in the area just 15 minutes before DiStefano was attacked. They said they're looking for three men and a fourth person, the getaway driver. Anyone with information was asked to contact the West Hollywood Sheriff's Station.