Former U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer Assaulted and Robbed in Oakland

Senator Barbara Boxer
Senator Barbara Boxer

Justin Sullivan/Getty

Former United States Senator Barbara Boxer was assaulted and robbed in Oakland, California, on Monday.

A statement released on the 80-year-old's Twitter account briefly describing the incident that occurred Monday morning in the waterfront Jack London Square neighborhood.

"The assailant pushed her in the back, stole her cell phone and jumped in a waiting car," the statement read. "She is thankful that she was not seriously injured."

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In a statement to the San Fransisco Chronicle, the Oakland Police Department confirmed that a victim was involved in a robbery around 1:15 p.m. on Monday in the 300 block of Third Street.

Police did not identify the victim, but said that they were approached by the suspect, who forcefully "took loss from the victim," and fled in a vehicle that was waiting nearby, the newspaper reports.

The Oakland Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

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Boxer served in Congress as a U.S. Senator from 1993 to 2017. As a member of the Democratic Party, she served previously as the U.S. Representative for California's 6th congressional district for 10 years prior to her election to the Senate.

In 2016, she chose not to seek reelection, bringing her 30-year career in Congress to an end.