Sandra Lee Thompkins, a 79-year-old Black woman, died on May 14, 2021, in Altadena, California, more than four months after a violent attack in the community. Her death was recorded in Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner records and included in the county's homicide reporting. The location associated with her case was 2421 Lincoln Avenue, near the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Figueroa Drive. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau was identified as the investigating agency.
On the afternoon of January 10, 2021, a woman identified in official investigative records as Sandra T., whose age and circumstances correspond to Thompkins, was walking along a sidewalk near the All Star Liquor Market. At approximately 4:08 p.m., a man later identified as 48-year-old Allen Mirzayan of Pasadena approached her from behind. Mirzayan had reportedly been behaving erratically in the area, confronting motorists and pedestrians before turning his attention toward the elderly woman. Without any apparent provocation, he grabbed her, threw her to the pavement, and began attacking her.
Investigators determined that Mirzayan kicked and punched the woman while she was on the ground and stabbed her with a knife. She suffered a two-inch stab wound to her left buttock and a fractured right hip. Surveillance footage captured the assault, including Mirzayan approaching her from behind and leaving her lying on the sidewalk. Witnesses who saw the violence immediately sought help, flagging down a Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy traveling through the area.
When the first deputy arrived, Mirzayan was still nearby, shirtless and holding a knife. Rather than surrendering, he approached the deputy's patrol vehicle and repeatedly struck it with the weapon. The deputy requested assistance, and two additional deputies arrived within minutes. The three officers attempted to persuade Mirzayan to drop the knife, but he continued moving around the roadway, refusing their commands. After advancing toward the deputies and retreating several times, Mirzayan suddenly moved toward them again while armed with the knife.
Believing they were facing an imminent threat, all three deputies opened fire. Mirzayan was struck multiple times and collapsed in the roadway. Deputies and responding paramedics attempted to provide medical assistance, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators recovered the knife, including its separated blade and handle, near where he fell. The injured woman was transported by ambulance to a hospital for emergency treatment.
In the days following the attack, authorities reported that the woman remained hospitalized in intensive care. She was initially described as being in stable condition while receiving treatment for the stab wound and serious hip injury. Investigators said the attack appeared to have been unprovoked, and there was no indication that the victim and Mirzayan knew each other. No clear motive was established.
Thompkins died on May 14, 2021. Her death was subsequently documented in the Los Angeles County homicide records, with the Lincoln Avenue location associated with the January assault. However, the publicly available homicide entry classified the cause as "Other" without providing a specific medical explanation. The available records do not establish precisely how her health deteriorated following the attack or independently confirm the medical relationship between her injuries and her death.
Because Mirzayan was fatally shot during the confrontation with deputies, he was never arrested, formally charged, or brought to trial for the assault. The deputy-involved shooting nevertheless prompted separate investigations by the Sheriff's Department and the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. On August 18, 2023, prosecutors completed their review and concluded that Deputies Raul Reyes, Roberto Sigala, and Jacob Thome reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to protect themselves and others from an imminent threat of serious injury or death.
The investigation established the circumstances of the violent January confrontation, identified the man responsible for the attack, and documented the response that ended in his death. No subsequent criminal prosecution or conviction connected to Thompkins's death could be established from the available public records. Her case remains a tragic account of an elderly woman subjected to an apparently unprovoked act of violence in Altadena, followed months later by her death.
