

A couple walking home last Tuesday night on typically quiet Sanchez Street in Duboce Triangle fell victim to a seemingly random assault by four young men, and robbery was not the motive. According to Dean Ayers, he and his wife Mary Artist were on the 100 block of Sanchez near Henry when four men between the ages of 19 and 23 approached them and began harassing them. As Hoodline reports, via Nextdoor, Ayers says, "They did not ask for valuables. They threatened to rape my wife."

In attempting to get them to back off, Ayers was punched in the face, and the assailants then knocked Artist to the ground. Her head hit the pavement and she remains hospitalized a week later with a concussion and a brain bleed.

No arrests have been made, and Ayers was only able to give a description of one of the suspects, who he said was early 20s, possibly Hispanic, with long, dark curly hair tied in a pony tail, and with a baseball cap and hoodie. Also, strangely, a night vision camera was discovered in the vicinity of the attack.

Via a GoFundMe campaign for the couple's medical expenses, we learn that the assault capped off an already tragic month for Ayers, coming "on the heels of Dean's trip to southern California to visit his gravely ill brother, during which time he found out that his mother had died."

Ayers suffered both the blow to the face and a sprained ankle, leaving him unable to walk. Artist is recovering slowly and may require some long-term care.

Anyone who may have any information about the suspects can call SFPD at (415) 575-4444 or send a text to TIP411 and begin the text with "SFPD."