EXCLUSIVE: San Francisco man pistol-whipped and shot for Rolex in broad daylight

"We should be able to live in the city we live in and walk freely and not to have to worry about someone jumping us from behind."

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Friday, January 21, 2022
EXCLUSIVE: San Francisco man pistol-whipped and shot for Rolex
Only on 7: A San Francisco man is now planning to leave the state after he was pistol-whipped for his watch.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A San Francisco man is now planning to leave the state after he was pistol-whipped and shot for his watch.



The man who requested he be referred to only as his initials "YY" said he was walking with a friend in the Mint Plaza area Sunday afternoon, looking for an apartment.



RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Men with luxury watches, including a $30,000 Rolex, targeted in Bay Area robberies


A number of brazen robberies are being documented across the Bay Area, involving expensive watches being taken right off people's wrists.


A car suddenly stopped along Mary Street as YY and his friend were checking out the surrounding streets. Two men jumped out, one with a mask and one without and demanded YY's Rolex then messenger bag.



YY was pistol-whipped and shot at according to police, grazed by a bullet. He is now planning to move to Texas or out of the country to Spain.



RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Elderly couple assaulted, robbed day after Christmas in Oakland's Chinatown



After YY says he was targeted for his phone in an attempted robbery once before, this is the final straw. He doesn't believe the issue is about not wearing jewelry or "nice things" but is a matter of finding solutions to make the community safer.



"We should be able to live in the city we live in and walk freely and not to have to worry about someone jumping us from behind or front or using a gun or no gun. The city has got to find a way to make us feel safer."



RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Video shows 4 suspects attacking woman in brazen Oakland theft



There have been a number of high-end watch thefts in recent weeks including a 52-year old Asian man who was pistol-whipped and robbed by two men with guns for his watch along O'Farrell between Steiner and Fillmore Streets.



RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Man shot while trying to stop Oakland Chinatown robbery explains why he stepped in


A man who was shot twice while trying to deescalate a violent purse-snatching in Oakland's Chinatown, is speaking exclusively to ABC7 News.


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