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California man beaten, robbed outside bank after withdrawing $200K life savings to help family during Covid-19

Francisco Cornejo had withdrawn the entire amount from a branch of Chase bank after the sale of his home

A man from California was robbed of his life savings right outside a bank moments after he withdrew $200,000 to assist his family during the coronavirus crisis in the country. The man, identified as Francisco Cornejo, was reportedly heading back to his car in Huntington Park on July 30 when he was attacked. An onlooker also captured the incident on their camera, which showed Cornejo being knocked to the ground and the suspect, wearing a black hoodie, running off with his bag of money. 

Cornejo had reportedly withdrawn the money from a branch of Chase bank after the sale of his home. The money was to assist his family with living costs during the current pandemic as he and his partner are unemployed, according to KTLA-TV. Cornejo, after the incident, was left with a dislocated shoulder and bruising. His daughter, Sindy Flores, in a statement, said: "My parents needed this money to get through this pandemic as they are both unemployed, to support my 94-year-old grandma with her medical and living expenses, to pay for my sister's grad school tuition, and to send money to their family and loved ones in Mexico and El Salvador, as many of them have lost their jobs and homes due to the lack of work because of COVID-19 pandemic."

Cornejo's attorney, Nathan Soleimani, also commented on the incident, saying that his client was fighting for his life savings when he was attacked by the robber. "He was parked as closely as possible to the bank, knowing he was going to withdraw a large amount of cash," he said. "Within 30 seconds of just getting to his car, he was grabbed, beaten, robbed, and they took everything from him. He was literally fighting for his life savings. And when he was being beaten, he was doing his best to try and retain the bag that he brought with him."

The attorney also added that his client had not told anyone about making such a large withdrawal, however, he added: "We don’t have any information to insinuate that this wasn’t random, but it just seems like a very big coincidence — how exactly did whoever involved know what was going on, or how he was coming out at that exact moment? We are just asking for people to come forward if they have any information that can lead to the arrest of the individuals who robbed and beat my client."

Cornejo also shared his "traumatic" experience, in Spanish, while his daughter created a page on GoFundMe to help raise funds for her father's treatment and additional costs. Flores, on the page, wrote: "He never expected such an atrocious attack. Bystanders attest that my dad was fighting with all of his will. My father was dragged by the criminal as they both fought for the bag. This money was hard-earned and as a result of years and years of work."

The Huntington Park Police Department is reportedly investigating the case currently. The identity of the robber has not yet been established.