Man punches party magician and gets arrested in Pacific Palisades, victims say

According to victims and witnesses, a man was arrested Saturday in Pacific Palisades on suspicion of attacking three people — including a homeowner who was left covered in blood and a magician who was punched in the middle of a child's birthday party.

Before police could arrest him, the suspect was chased by angry parents, witnesses said.

The bizarre series of attacks began on Saturday around 3:30 p.m.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, 36-year-old Bryan Stennett assaulted a person in the 400 block of Mesa Road. The victim's identity and condition were not released.

About 15 minutes later, as he was driving home, Pacific Palisades homeowner Mike Deasy noticed Stennett walking nearby. As Deasy drove by, he told the Times, he heard Stennett make a loud noise. When Deasy got home, he picked up a package that had been brought to his porch – with both hands so he couldn't close the door behind him – and placed it inside.

When he returned to close the door, he said Stennett was in the doorway. Stennett asked him, “Is this your house?”

“I don’t remember what I said,” Deasy said. The man then lunged at him and punched him half a dozen times, he said. The moments before the attack were captured on CCTV cameras. The suspect appears to be speaking incoherently before the attack.

In an interview with ABC7, Deasy appears battered, with a bloody forehead and bandaged and bruised arms. Speaking to The Times on Monday, he said he was in “severe pain” but had been cleared by doctors of a head injury.

Less than an hour later and a quarter-mile off Mesa Road at Rustic Canyon Recreational Park, local artist “California Joe, the Explorer Magician” performed a pirate-themed magic trick for a 4-year-old's birthday party in front of about 60 guests.

About 30 children sat in a semicircle around a tree, said Alec Egan, the birthday boy's father. When parents saw a man walking behind the tree, they thought he might be part of the magic act or at least someone invited to the party.

“He kind of looked like a dad who was maybe picking mushrooms,” said Egan, standing about 50 feet from the tree and holding a toddler.

Egan said he heard Stennett insult the magician, whose real name is Richard Ribuffo.

Ribuffo told the Times he saw Stennett and thought the man was a parent trying to disrupt his routine to be funny, “which happens more often than you think.”

He said he heard Stennett yelling, “Turn off the voices” – Ribuffo believes he may have been referring to the sound coming from his microphone. He appeared to be under the influence of drugs or in a mental health crisis, Ribuffo said.

Then, Egan said, Stennett ran from behind the tree and punched the magician in the forehead about 10 feet from the children.

“It surprised us all,” Ribuffo said. He said he managed to keep his distance from his attacker and begged parents to call 911 until help arrived moments later – in the form of angry fathers.

Describing it as a “red, primal father feeling,” Egan said he passed the child to his mother-in-law “football-style” and ran toward Stennett with two of his friends. Stennett fled and the three chased him to Sunset Boulevard before Egan returned to the park. The other two men continued the pursuit into the North Village neighborhood, he said, keeping an eye on Stennett until police arrived to arrest him.

Ribuffo, who suffered bruising and swelling to his head from the attack, said he was completely healthy and credited his calm reaction and control of the situation to his study of martial arts. “Guys, take your kids to karate,” he said.

Both Egan and Ribuffo said the shock of the attack was partly because it took place in the park, which both described as safe.

“It came so out of nowhere,” Ribuffo said.

The children returned to the party after the incident and had fun until the planned end, Egan said. His daughter was fine, he said, but asked what “assault” was and whether the man had been invited to the party. His daughter's preschool sent letters to parents with advice on how to explain the incident to their children, he said.

As for California Joe, Egan said, “He took [the punch] like a champion.”

Ribuffo said he was disappointed he couldn't finish his show for the children. He said he tried to give the parents a discount but received the full amount and even a tip. He said he wasn't angry at the man who attacked him, but hoped he would get the help he needed.

“He’s having a much worse day than I am,” he said.

Stennett was arrested on suspicion of assault and booked into the Van Nuys Jail. He was awaiting formal charges and a court date had not yet been set as of Monday evening.