Bert Atienza died of blunt head trauma on June 9, a day after a violent confrontation inside a Norfolk, Virginia Walmart left him unconscious on the store floor. The death was officially ruled a homicide, marking a tragic end to what began as a routine shopping trip with his wife, Josephine.
The trigger was a 17-year-old employee who allegedly rushed a shopping cart down an aisle, nearly striking Josephine. Bert confronted the teenager, demanding an apology. The couple moved on, but the teen allegedly threw a can at them before calling her parents, Travis White, 44, and Erika Mitchell, 42.
Surveillance footage obtained by WTKR captures the aftermath. Minutes later, White and Mitchell tracked down the elderly couple in the store. They shoved, grabbed, and punched Atienza before pushing him into a shelf. One suspect kicked him while he lay on the ground. "They crowded my husband, one of the adults hit him in the face," Josephine told WTKR, describing her terror as she pleaded with the attackers to stop, knowing her husband had heart problems.
Atienza regained consciousness briefly, asking his wife for help, before losing consciousness again. He died in the hospital the next day. Prosecutors initially charged White and Mitchell with malicious wounding by mob and conspiracy, but court records show those charges were upgraded to second-degree murder. Their attorney, James Broccoletti, disputed the intent to kill, arguing the parents went to the store to help their daughter in distress.
The 17-year-old employee, no longer with Walmart, faces assault and battery charges and is held at the Norfolk Juvenile Detention Center. White and Mitchell remain in Norfolk jail without bond, awaiting a trial date that will determine if their actions constituted premeditated murder or a tragic, fatal escalation.