SOUTHLAND : Youth Attacked While 50 Watch

While as many as 50 people looked on in horror in a Reseda shopping center parking lot, five suspected gang members chased a 17-year-old rival with baseball bats and then ran over him twice with a car, Los Angeles police said today.

“This was in broad daylight,” Detective Rick Swanston said. “They were very blatant about it. They acted like they didn’t care who saw them.”

Victor Escalante, 17, of Reseda was left unconscious by the 3:15 p.m. attack at the shopping plaza at 18300 Vanowen St., police said. He was taken to Northridge Hospital Medical Center, where he was in critical condition after surgery for massive internal injuries, Swanston said.

Numerous witnesses provided investigators with detailed descriptions of the suspects, their car and its license plate number. The car, which had been reported stolen Thursday, was found abandoned this morning in Canoga Park.