Grandfather Loses Memory, Can't Remember Family After Seemingly Unprovoked Attack at Gas Station

A brutal attack caught on an Irwindale gas station security camera has left a 62-year-old grandfather with severe injuries, and his daughter is sharing the family’s heartbreak as police search for the attacker.

"He’s a great dad, husband--he’s a great grandparent," Monica Gobolyos, the victim's daughter, said.

Gobolyos said her father, Jose Sanchez, is always caring for his family.  In fact, she said there was only one reason her dad had filled up at the Arco station off Longden Avenue at 1:50 a.m. the night of the attack.

"He was going to take my mom to church early Sunday morning," the daughter said.

Security footage on July 12 shows what happened next.  Sanchez got out his truck and appeared to be talking with the attacker. Then, in what appears to be an unprovoked attack, the man punched Sanchez and knocked him to the ground.

"I don’t have the words to describe how brutal it was," the victim's daughter said. "I don’t see any reason why — he’s an old man. And the person who did this to my dad, there’s a big difference on sizes and ages. I don’t think that was ok—hitting my dad for no reason."

Police don’t know the reason either, because it wasn’t until a clerk arrived 20 minutes later that Sanchez was discovered unconscious on the floor. Perhaps most heartbreaking for the family, they said Sanchez can’t remember what happened, nor can he recognize any of them.

"He knows his name," Gobolyos said. "He knows he’s Jose. We repeatedly are telling him, 'You are Jose, Jose, Jose,' but other than that, he got severe brain damage."

Police said they have located and interviewed the driver of that 2003 Honda Pilot in the video, but they still haven’t found the attacker.

They said he has a larger build and point out he’s wearing a black shirt with a Marilyn Monroe design in the front.

Gobolyos said it could take months for her father to recover, if at all.

"I need the help from everybody probably there’s going to be someone out there who knows this person," she said. "Bring justice to him."

Gobolyos has set up a GoFundMe for her father. If you would like to donate to the GoFundMe, you may do so here. Please not that GoFundMe takes a percentage of all money raised in the form of platform and other fees.