Grandmother assaulted, robbed while walking with grandson in Calif.

ELK GROVE, Calif. (KOVR) - Authorities in California arrested a man in connection to a broad daylight robbery and assault on a grandmother walking with her 3-year-old grandson.

A 63-year-old grandmother, who did not want to be identified over safety concerns, was attacked and robbed in the middle of the day in Elk Grove, California. At the time, she was walking while pushing her 3-year-old grandson, who has special needs, in a stroller.

“I wouldn’t feel safe anymore because now, that’s in the back of my mind,” the grandmother said.

Neither she nor her grandson were injured, but both were badly shaken by Tuesday’s attack.

“He was just scared, like I was, too, you know,” the grandmother said. “No reason, that’s the way I saw it, for this person to come after me. I don’t even know him.”

On their walk, the grandmother felt someone getting a little too close. She turned around, and before she could react, she says she was grabbed.

“He picked me up and threw me down. Then, the baby’s stroller... flipped to the side, and then, the baby started crying,” she said.

Drakkar Jenkins, 29, is being held on several counts, including robbery and violating the... — Drakkar Jenkins, 29, is being held on several counts, including robbery and violating the terms of his probation, in connection to a broad daylight robbery and assault on a grandmother.(Source: Elk Grove Police Dept, KOVR via CNN)

The suspect then stole some of the grandmother’s things, including her cell phone and debit cards, and ran off.

Police have identified the man accused of the attack as 29-year-old Drakkar Jenkins. He is being held on several counts, including robbery and violating the terms of his probation. Just one day before allegedly attacking the grandmother, he was charged with burglary.

Police were able to arrest Jenkins with the help of two good Samaritans, the first who called 911 and the second who spotted Jenkins jumping over a guardrail near the highway.

Monica Jimenez, the 3-year-old’s mother, is grateful for the Samaritans’ actions and hopes her son’s grandmother will feel safe walking in the area again.

“We never know when we are going to need the assistance of one of our fellow community members,” Jimenez said.

Jenkins also has a prior history of theft and burglary. In 2019, he was charged with theft and sentenced to probation. That same year, he was accused of burglary and being in possession of a weapon in a school zone, but both cases were dismissed.