Anonymous tip leads to arrest of Tustin man for alleged assault of elderly man in Irvine

A Tustin man has been arrested for allegedly attacking an elderly man in Irvine last week in a confrontation precipitated by a fight between the two men’s dogs, officials said.

Keven Quiroz, 23, was arrested Thursday at his apartment in Tustin, Irvine police said. Investigators identified him as a suspect based on an anonymous tip received after surveillance footage of the attack was released to the public.

The 69-year-old victim was attempting to separate his dog from the suspect’s dog after the two animals got into a fight with each other on a grassy area of Sierra Vista Middle School’s campus on Friday, March 19. Quiroz is suspected of approaching the suspect from behind and striking him in the head while he was kneeling.

The attacker is seen briefly standing over the victim before leaving the area with an unleashed Husky in footage released by police. After getting knocked down, the elderly man manages to sit back up to his knees, and appears to allow a small dog to hop onto his lap. He was evaluated at a hospital, and did not suffer any serious injuries.

“Based on the totality of the investigation, IPD detectives believe the assault followed a dispute over the suspect’s dog being off-leash,” police said.

The victim was an elderly Asian man. Police said Thursday that “it does not appear the ethnicity of the victim was a factor in the assault.”

Quiroz was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and elder abuse. He was held in lieu of $50,000 bail Thursday, and scheduled to appear in court Monday, March 29.

An unloaded rifle was recovered during a search of Quiroz’s vehicle, police said. It was not immediately clear if he was legally permitted to have the gun.

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