A 77-year-old Virginia Beach man died after he was attacked inside a Norfolk Walmart by the parents of a teenage employee he had confronted over a shopping cart, his widow said.

Bert D. Atienza died of blunt head trauma on June 8, 2026, a day after the assault at 1170 N. Military Highway. The Virginia medical examiner ruled the death a homicide. Police found him unresponsive after a reported assault about 3:20–3:50 p.m. on June 7.

Josephine Atienza, his wife of 42 years, told WTKR they had gone grocery shopping after church. She said a 17-year-old Walmart worker nearly struck her with a cart and did not apologize. Bert told the teen she had almost hit his wife with a heavy cart and had not said excuse me. They argued. Josephine said the employee threw a can toward them as they walked away and called her parents.

Minutes later Travis White, 44, and Erika Mitchell, 42, of Norfolk found the couple in an aisle. Surveillance video shows Atienza looking at a shelf when the adults approached. Josephine said they crowded him and one hit him in the face. He was shoved, punched, pushed into shelving and fell. “They crowded my husband, one of the adults hit him in the face. He fell down on the floor. I was terrified. I don’t know what’s going on.” She said they kept kicking him on the floor. She told them to stop because he had heart problems. He asked her to help him get up. She said he was bleeding and to wait for the ambulance. He then lost consciousness.

White and Mitchell were arrested days later. They were first charged with malicious wounding by mob, aggravated malicious wounding and conspiracy. Court records later listed second-degree murder. They are held without bond. The 17-year-old employee was charged with assault and battery, aggravated malicious wounding and conspiracy and held in juvenile detention. Walmart said she no longer works there.

Atienza was a Filipino American and a U.S. military veteran. Josephine said she lost a husband of 42 years and their son lost a father. “If only I could turn back time.”

Sources

• WTKR (widow interview and store video)
• WAVY, The Virginian-Pilot
• Norfolk Police Department
• Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
• The Guardian and follow-up national coverage