Victim in random Brooklyn assault: 'He punched me. I don't know why'

Monday, March 26, 2018
BENSONHURST, Brooklyn (WABC) -- A 17-year-old girl who was violently pushed to the ground in Brooklyn Friday in a caught-on-camera attack is speaking out about the terrifying ordeal.

Police say the suspect attacked two women just minutes apart on 18th Avenue in Bensonhurst, and so far, no arrests have been made.

Raw video from the NYPD:
Man attacks two women within 5 minutes Brooklyn street

"I was scared," Jasmine Diaz said. "So I don't know what to do."

Diaz was walking to school around 7 a.m. when the complete stranger suddenly grabbed her, wrapping his arms around her before slamming her to the ground.

"He punched me," she said. "I don't know why. Then he throw me to the floor...He don't tell me nothing. He just walking. He ignored me."

Then he just walked away, as if nothing had happened. Five minutes later, the same man flashed a 31-year-old woman standing at a bus stop on the corner of 18th Avenue and 79th Street.

The victim walked away, and the suspect chased her. He then pulled down his pants again to expose his genitals before punching her in the face and fleeing, police said.

The victim sustained a laceration to her lip.

Diaz had not heard about the second victim, but now, she hopes the suspect is quickly taken off the streets.

He is described as a black man, age 30 to 40, about 5-foot-9 with a medium build. He was last seen wearing a black jacket with a hood, black jeans and a black skull cap. He was carrying a plastic bag.

Anyone with information 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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