Women in New York are randomly getting punched in the face, and no one knows why.
Several women have made TikTok videos describing being randomly attacked while walking down the street, stoking concerns about crime in the city.
The strange epidemic of punches first came to light when Halley Kate, a 23-year-old TikToker living in New York, posted a now-viral video on March 25 in which she said she had been punched in the face. face as she walked down the street. .
“I was literally walking and a man came and punched me in the face. Oh my God, it hurts so much, I can’t even talk,” said a tearful Kate, who can be seen with a large bump on her. forehead.
In later videos, Kate explained that she was looking at her phone when a man walking a dog punched or elbowed her in the head, causing her to fall to the ground and hit her head on the sidewalk .
Kate said she went to urgent care and reported the incident to police.
The NYPD, which does not reveal the identities of the victims, confirmed to Business Insider that it received a report of an assault from a 23-year-old woman who was struck in the head and then fell to the ground and was injured.
They said a 40-year-old man, identified as Skiboky Stora, was arrested and charged on March 27 and the investigation was still ongoing.
Stora has previously tried to run for various positions in local government, including mayor, governor and city councilman, NBC reported.
Kate’s original video has been viewed over 40 million times at the time of writing.
Random punch attacks destabilized women in New York
New York City at dusk. Aerial Perspective Images
Since Kate’s story went viral, another TikToker video from a week ago resurfaced in which she also said she was punched in the street in New York.
Olivia Brand said a man approached her in the Nolita/SoHo area and said “sorry” before punching her in the head. She said she reported the incident to police.
The NYPD confirmed to BI that a 25-year-old woman reported being punched on March 17 near Kenmare Street and Mulberry Street and that it was classified as a harassment incident.
Another woman, by the username Malous228, said on TikTok that she was hit in the head by a random man in Times Square. Her video included a clip of a man she said was her attacker walking away.
She said she came forward with her story after seeing other viral videos about similar attacks.
“Girls in New York need to feel safe. Women, in general, just need to feel safe. I mean, we’re always careful walking at night, but now we need to be careful when we walk in broad daylight? she says.
The NYPD said it received a report of an assault from a 25-year-old woman on March 23, who said she was struck in the head by an unknown person at the corner of West 42nd Street and 7th Avenue.
Another TikTok user, Mikayla Toninato, posted a video showing a visible injury to her face, saying she was also randomly punched while walking out of the New School on 14th Street and 5th Avenue .
A fifth woman, Selena Pikanab, also said on TikTok that a man hit her in NoHo.
The latter two women said they had not filed police complaints and BI could not independently verify the claims.
Gizem Sirmali, a 27-year-old content creator living in Germany, told the Guardian she was hit on the streets of SoHo while I was in town for work in February.
“I felt a big slap on my face and I was wearing sunglasses, so the first thing I thought about was my nose,” she said. “I immediately wanted to check if it was broken or not.” She said she didn’t get a good look at her attacker.
Former “Apprentice” contestant and “Real Housewives of New York City” cast member Bethenny Frankel also reported that she was hit on a Manhattan street, Page Six said, earlier this year.
It is unclear whether the culprit behind the punches is the same or whether multiple men carry out the random attacks.
Toninato said in a TikTok that since her story went public, several women had reached out to her to say they had also recently been hit randomly in New York.
She said some of the descriptions the women gave of their attackers matched the man who hit her, but others were different – suggesting it could be several different men behind the coincidence. Gizem Sirmali, a 27-year-old content creator living in Germany, said. According to the Guardian, she was struck on the streets of SoHo while in town for work in February.
“I felt a big slap on my face and I was wearing sunglasses, so the first thing I thought about was my nose,” she said. “I immediately wanted to check if it was broken or not.” She said she didn’t get a good look at her attacker.
Bethenny Frankel, a former “Apprentice” contestant and “Real Housewives of New York City” cast member, also reported that she was punched on a Manhattan street, Page Six reported earlier this year.
It is unclear whether the culprit behind the punches is the same or whether multiple men carry out the random attacks.
Toninato said in a TikTok that since her story went public, several women had contacted her to say they had also recently been hit randomly in New York.
She said some of the descriptions the women gave of their attackers matched the man who hit her, but others were different, suggesting several different men could be behind the random attacks.
Page Six said more than 25 women had taken to TikTok to share their stories of attacks.
Psychological impact
Unsurprisingly, the wave of random punching attacks has unsettled women in New York.
Many took to social media to express their fears of being struck and to warn others to remain vigilant.
The stories come amid fears of a rise in crime in the city following a series of reports of random attacks on the subway, including one that resulted in the death of a commuter.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said hundreds of National Guard and state troops were being deployed to the city’s subway system to address the problem.
Despite the recent influx of alarming stories, data shows that crime rates in New York have decreased in 2024 compared to last year.
It’s unclear whether more women are being randomly attacked in the city than usual or whether it just seems to be because the stories have gained traction online.
The recent string of headline-grabbing violent crimes has led conservatives including Elon Muskto criticize Democratic leaders for not being strong enough in the fight against crime and allowing liberal cities to become hotbeds of criminal activity.
Some activists say right-wing media used the subway attacks to raise alarm about crime, a tactic they say will likely continue before the next election.
However, data showing falling crime rates likely won’t reassure New Yorkers.
“Saying things are getting better doesn’t make you feel better,” Hochul acknowledged in announcing the deployment of the National Guard to the New York City subway.
“Especially when you’ve just heard about someone being stabbed in the throat or thrown onto the subway tracks. There’s a psychological impact.”
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