Another Potential 'Knockout' Attack In Philadelphia
By Elizabeth Hur
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A man was attacked out of nowhere, and Philadelphia police believe it's the latest assault tied to the so-called "Knockout Game."
A witness says the attackers videotaped the whole thing.
While that video has yet to surface, that witness is speaking out and talking only to Eyewitness News.
"It was really, really sad to see how hurt he was," she says.
The eyewitness asked to remain anonymous, because she says she is now living in fear, knowing the suspects are still out there.
"Sad to live like that. I grew up here my whole life and I can't wait to leave," she says.
What she saw, according to police, was a 63-year-old man fall victim to what investigators from Northeast Detectives are calling a case of the "Knockout Game," where criminals punch someone so hard they lose consciousness.
"It was just one punch and the old man, his body just fell, dead weight, just fell to the ground, then they probably kicked him two, three times. His left side of the face was swollen. His whole left cheek was out to here. It's sad," the witness says.
It happened Sunday afternoon in the 4400 block of Wellington Street, and as seen in YouTube videos from other cities, we are told the suspects in this case also taped the entire incident.
"Two went behind him and two stayed in the street and videotaped it with their phone, their camera phones."
The four suspects then ran away when the witness screamed for help. Mayfair Town Watch is now alerting its community on Facebook of what some call not just cowardly, but a disturbing act that appears to have been premeditated.
"As they walked by my car, I heard the one say, 'That's an old man,' and the other one said, 'So what?' So they were planning on it, plotting on it, they knew what they were doing."
According to the eyewitness, the suspects did not try to rob the victim, leading police to believe this random attack was a case of the "Knockout Game."
Descriptions of the suspects remain vague. The eyewitness says it all happened so fast, and she only recalls seeing four black males in their late teens to early 20s.
Police say they are investigating.
The victim's family told Eyewitness News that the 63-year-old has been hospitalized with head and chest injuries since Sunday. He should be released some time on Tuesday.
