Doctor killed by gunman in LA was attacked months earlier by three men with baseball bats

A doctor who was shot dead outside his medical clinic in Los Angeles was previously beaten by three men with baseball bats, according to a new report.

Dr. Hamid Mirshojae was shot and killed Friday as he walked to his car at his Woodland Hills medical office. The gunman reportedly waited outside for an hour until the doctor left the building, leading police to believe it was a targeted killing.

Now a report appeared in Los Angeles Times revealed that the doctor was once attacked by three men with baseball bats. However, it is unclear whether there is a connection between the attack and his fatal shooting.

Police did not disclose when the bat attack occurred. The Independent has asked the LAPD for comment.

“They came and beat him with baseball bats. … They were strangers we didn't know,” a hospital employee who asked not to be identified told the newspaper.

The employee said the doctor began to fear for his life after the attack.

No one has been arrested in connection with the baseball bat attack and the doctor's shooter is still at large.

The LAPD informed the LA Times that the doctor likely had no idea someone was waiting for him when he was shot from behind. Police reviewed surveillance video that captured the attack and said they did not believe the attacker exchanged a word with the doctor, but said he was “shot almost immediately.”

Police believe the shooter was a man, but point out that the surveillance video is not clear enough to say this with certainty.

Mirshojae succumbed to his injuries in the parking lot. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.

According to KTLA, a makeshift memorial for the doctor has been erected outside the medical clinic.

Investigators currently have no motive for the shooting. An LAPD spokesman told the newspaper that investigators are reviewing the doctor's medical history and examining interactions he had prior to the shooting.

Mirshojae was a popular and celebrated doctor in his community, and his duties also included treating patients battling drug addiction.

A former patient, Khedhar Quintero, told the broadcaster that the doctor was “full of love.”

“He doesn’t care that you’re just another number in his lobby, your future is just as important to him,” the patient said.

The doctor's wife and their six-month-old baby were visiting family in Turkey at the time of the shooting. Mirshojae also reportedly leaves behind three children from a previous marriage.