88-year-old woman punched in face during Brooklyn home invasion
CONEY ISLAND, Brooklyn (WABC) -- An 88-year-old woman was struck in the face during a violent and terrifying Christmas morning home invasion in Brooklyn.
Police were called to West 25th Street near Surf Avenue in Coney Island around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Authorities say the victim, Lyubov Faynshteyn, had left her front door open for a home attendant when a man pushed his way inside.
He found her in her bedroom and punched her in the head before ransacking the room in search of cash.
Faynshteyn screamed and reached for her medic alert button.
"He just hit her so badly but she was able to push that button, the panic button. She is so brave," said the woman's niece, Marina Fedorovsky.
The suspect ran out, leaving his elderly victim to wait for police.
Faynshteyn was taken to Coney Island Hospital with cuts and bruises to her face. She returned home from the hospital Tuesday afternoon, badly bruised.
Her niece says she may need surgery to repair a fractured bone in her face.
"She's very sweet person, never hurt anybody, never did anything bad," said Fedorovsky. "It cannot happen to good people."
It is unclear if anything was taken.
The NYPD released surveillance photos of the suspect.
Police describe the suspect as a black male in his 40s, with a beard and mustache; last seen wearing a black hooded sweater, a dark colored hooded jacket, beige pants, black sneakers and he was pulling a black wheeled suitcase.
Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
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