The attack took place at about 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Starbucks on Elm Avenue in Auburn, California, according to reports.

Video footage from within the store caught the incident and showed the attacker cutting another man with a bladed object, according to a KCRA 3 News report. The victim attempted to raise his arms to defend himself from the attacker, who then fled the scene.

Auburn Police Det. Chris Sanschagrin spoke to KCRA 3 News about the incident.

He said: “The victim sustained minor cuts. We don’t really have much of a connection between him and the suspect. There was no interaction between them up until the attack happened. At this time we don’t have a motive for why he did so.”

The officer also said this incident was unusual for the Auburn area, which is normally a quiet city that does not deal with many violent crime incidents.

Police are in the process of using other surveillance images and videos from around the location to help find the attacker.

The Auburn Police Department also took to Facebook to ask for help from the public in identifying the alleged attacker.

The post shared pictures of the suspect and captioned it: “We need your help.”

“We’re looking for help to identify a suspect involved in an assault. Suspect is described as a white male adult in his 30s to early 30s, 5'9. Last seen wearing sun glasses, beanie, black wind breaker jacket, jeans, and white tennis shoes.

“If you have any information please call Dispatch at 520-823-4234.”

Newsweek has contacted the Auburn Police Department for comment.

The Public Policy Institute of California has released reports on a surge in violent crime in the state.

In an October 2022 report, the institute noted that the state saw an increase in 2021. This trend may not necessarily be true of the city of Auburn, which according to a 2021 census, has a population of only 13,845 people.

“California’s violent crime rate increased by 6.0%, from 440 per 100,000 residents in 2020 to 466 in 2021. While robberies fell somewhat (by 1.9%), aggravated assaults jumped by 8.9%, and homicides and rape increased by 7.7% and 7.9%, respectively.

“In 2021, aggravated assaults were 67% of reported violent crimes; 24% were robberies, 8% were rape, and 1% were homicides.

“California’s violent crime rate in 2020 (the latest nationwide statistics available) was higher than the national rate of 387 per 100,000 residents and ranked 16th nationwide.”

The report concluded that overall violent crime is much lower than its 1992 peak, despite this recent trend.