6 women and girls splashed with acid in apparent targeted attack in Jersey City, officials say
Six women and girls had acid thrown on them in Jersey City on Monday night, officials said.
It happened at around 7:30 p.m. in front of a house on Wilkinson Avenue near Ocean Avenue in the Greenville neighborhood.
Here's what we know
The victims, which include three teenagers, were standing outside the building when two suspects drove past them on a moped and threw what police believe was sulfuric acid at them.
The six were rushed to the hospital for treatment and are expected to survive, but suffered skin burns and peeling, police said. One victim, a 21-year-old, was transferred to the burn unit at St. Barnabas on Tuesday to be treated for second-degree burns to her face and scalp.
A juvenile was arrested in connection to the attack, police said.
Police believe the attack was not random and that the women were targeted after an argument earlier in the day.
"My thoughts are with those hurt in this horrific attack, and I want our communities to know that violence like this has absolutely no place on our streets," Jersey City Mayor James Solomon said.
Solomon said the police department will have all the resources it needs to find those responsible.
"I heard some girls screaming, 'It burns! It burns!'"
Neighbors described the scene to CBS News New York's Nick Caloway.
"I overheard one of the girls say. 'They threw acid at us!'" Emilia Sanchez said. "I heard a lot of commotion, girls fighting, doors slamming. Minutes after the fighting and the screaming, I heard some girls screaming 'It burns! It burns!'"
"And there were two guys over here using a machine, testing something, trying to figure out what type of chemical it might have been," neighbor Vantisha Govia added.
Govia said the attack seems to illustrate an underlying issue in society right now.
"People just don't have that compassion for other people anymore. It just seems like people are out to get each other and get revenge. We just need God," Govia said.
