An elderly man was fatally assaulted inside a Walmart store in Norfolk, Virginia, following a dispute involving a teenage employee and her parents, authorities reported. Bert Atienza, 77, died of blunt head trauma on June 8, one day after the attack occurred at the store.

According to Josephine Atienza, the victim’s wife, the incident began when her husband and the couple’s shopping cart nearly collided with a 17-year-old Walmart employee. The teen reportedly moved quickly down an aisle and almost hit Josephine with her cart. Bert Atienza confronted the employee over the incident, telling her that she had not apologized for nearly striking his wife.

The brief argument escalated when the employee threw a can toward the couple as they walked away. Following this, the teenager contacted her parents for assistance. Minutes later, Travis White, 44, and Erika Mitchell, 42, arrived at the store and allegedly sought out the Atienzas.

Store surveillance footage obtained by local media shows the elderly man browsing a shelf when the couple approached and attacked him. Witnesses described seeing Atienza pushed from behind, grabbed, and punched before being shoved into a shelving unit and collapsing to the floor. One of the assailants is seen kicking Atienza while he lay injured. Onlookers reportedly did not intervene.

Josephine Atienza described the assault as terrifying and noted that her husband, who had heart problems, begged for help before losing consciousness. She was left holding her husband on the floor until emergency personnel arrived. Atienza was transported to a hospital where he died the following day. Medical examiners ruled the death a homicide.

Authorities arrested White and Mitchell several days after the incident. Initially charged with malicious wounding by mob, aggravated malicious wounding, and conspiracy to commit a felony, both suspects now face second-degree murder charges according to court records.

The defense attorney, James Broccoletti, disputed the assertion of premeditation, describing the actions of White and Mitchell as a spontaneous response to their daughter’s distress. Broccoletti said the couple went to the store intending to ensure their daughter's safety and argued that they did not plan for the confrontation to escalate to violence.

Investigations remain ongoing as the case moves through the legal process.