Investigators said the Pizza Hut delivery man, 36-year-old Patrick Kasper, went to a house in the 22800 block of Adrienne Avenue carrying $90 worth of food around 9 p.m. Thursday.
The delivery man told deputies he was ambushed after knocking on the door. Kasper told family members that two to three teenagers attacked him, punched him, knocked him out and stole the food. When deputies went to investigate, they discovered the house was vacant.
Kasper drove back to his Pizza Hut location, then went home. The next morning, his mother heard him in his bedroom struggling to breathe. He was rushed to the hospital, but doctors told the family he had suffered a severe aneurysm in his brain. Kasper was pronounced legally brain dead.
Kasper's family said he was on life support at Riverside County Regional Medical Center in Moreno Valley. The family said they decided to donate his organs. Kasper is the father of an 11-year-old girl.
"It is not fair," said the victim's mother, Lori Kasper. "There's no reason for it, and now he's gone. He's left a daughter, and he's left his mother and his father."
Kasper was a Pizza Hut employee of eight years. The company said it's collecting donations at Pizza Hut locations in Moreno Valley and the Riverside area to help his family.
"I just want whoever did this to step forward, please, and turn yourself in, because I really loved my son a lot," said Lori Kasper.
Anyone with information related to the case was urged to contact the Moreno Valley Police Department at (951) 247-8700.
Southern California Pizza Company restaurants will be holding a fundraiser on Monday, June 11, from 4 p.m. to closing time at the Pizza Hut restaurants located at 24021 Alessandro Blvd., Moreno Valley, and 19040 Van Buren Blvd., Riverside. A percentage of proceeds from all orders during that time will go to the family.
