Woman, 66, Hospitalized After Being Robbed, Knocked To Ground In East New York
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A mugger punched a woman in the face and knocked her to the ground in Brooklyn this week, sending her to the hospital.
As CBS2's Jessica Layton reported, the crime had people in East New York shaken up.
Neighbors said the victim must have been walking alone when she was robbed, beaten up and knocked to the ground on Fountain Avenue in East New York just after midnight Wednesday. Some think the suspect was hanging out just waiting to attack in front of an abandoned property.
A pair of women's reading glasses sat next to dry pools of blood outside 180 Fountain Ave., after the was attack in the entryway of the only zombie property on the block.
Yarelis Rivera and her extended family have been nervous since police knocked on her door early yesterday morning.
"They said that a 66-year-old woman got robbed for her purse and really bad beaten up," Rivera said. "They showed me a picture of her, you know, her jaw is really bad. She can't talk."
Rivera was outside with her relatives minutes before Gladys Rodriguez was attacked just one door down close to midnight.
They figured Rodriguez had to be walking to her own home, a residential facility right around the corner from the disturbing scene. And with the attacker still on the loose, Rivera and her family were scared, because a lot of young children live in the neighborhood.
"Very worried, because they like running outside a lot," a neighbor said.
A man who lives across the street called police. He did not want to appear on camera, but he told CBS2's Layton he only caught a quick glimpse of the assailant, who was dressed in black from head to toe.
Police said the suspect took off on a scooter, leaving Rodriguez bleeding in the sidewalk.
Late Thursday, Rivera and her family had a message for the attacker.
"It's really sad to know you're going to beat a 66-year-old woman up so bad just for her purse," Rivera said.
The victim remained at Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center late Thursday, recovering from surgery.
