Juvenile arrested in acid attack that injured 6 people in Jersey City
JERSEY CITY, New Jersey (WABC) -- A juvenile is under arrest in Jersey City after an acid attack that sent several people to the hospital with skin burns.
It happened outside a home on Wilkinson Avenue near Ocean Avenue around 7:40 p.m. on Monday.
There were six victims in total, three of them teenagers, according to the Jersey City Police Department.
A 21-year-old victim was transferred to the hospital to be treated for second-degree burns to her face and scalp.
The victims were outside when a car pulled up to the group and threw what is believed to be sulfuric acid before getting away, police said.
"I heard fighting, and then after a couple of minutes of fighting, I heard one of the girls screaming, 'saying, it burns, it burns,'" Amelia Sanchez said.
Sanchez is bedridden and spoke to Eyewitness News through her window.
"I was going crazy because I couldn't see nothing," she said. "And this is happening on my block imagining my grandkids. We're out there. My grandkids kids are always out here."
"The people that were hurt, they had the towels on their face, and they went into the ambulance," said a witness named Aaron. "We thought it might have just been a fight."
The attack appears to have been targeted and may have stemmed from a dispute between a large group of people earlier in the day, according to a statement from the mayor.
"You know, it was a lot of commotion on a block, the day before, with a lot of girls out here, and then yesterday, so we didn't think it would be this bad or escalate like this," Aaron said. "We've been living on this block for a long time."
Residents say first responders could be seen washing down surfaces, sparking concern in the community.
"What am I being exposed to? Anything dangerous out here? You know, I have my daughter who is 2 years old," Aaron said.
Neighbors are thinking of the victims.
"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," one woman said.
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