(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) In 2024 alone, at least 50 women in New York City have fallen victim to random assaults by unidentified individuals, likely amplifying concerns over safety as Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg directs attention towards the trial of former President Donald Trump.
According to remarks from NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny, the alleged perpetrators, predominantly homeless men, have carried out these assaults primarily in the lower half of Manhattan, as reported by the New York Post.
“The trend that I’m getting from the people that we’re arresting, the majority of them are homeless, the majority of them seem like they need some kind of help with mental illness,” Kenny said on Tuesday.
Kenny emphasized that despite the similarities in the attacks, they are not coordinated, asserting that such incidents have been seen in the past. “This is no new phenomenon,” Kenny added.
The concerns surrounding these attacks intensified as victims promptly turned to social media to condemn the assaults, often doing so within minutes after they took place.
This online exposure, according to Kennedy, has led to increased reporting and publicity for the crimes. “[W]e welcome that. We want to encourage reporting so that we can make these arrests.”
Fashion student Mikayla Toninato and social media star Halley McGookin, also known online as Halley Kate, were among the women who shared their harrowing experiences in two viral videos posted on TikTok.
“You guys, I was literally just walking and a man came up and punched me in the face,” McGookin said in a video that has garnered over 50 million views. “OMG. It hurts so bad.”
@halleykate♬ original sound – halley
Toninato responded to McGookin’s viral video, saying that she too had been randomly attacked. “I was literally leaving class, and I turned the corner… I was looking at my phone and like texting and then out of nowhere this man just came up and hit me in my face,” she said.
@mikaylatoninato @halley ♬ original sound – mikayla
Headline USA has reached out to both McGookin and Tonitao for comments.
According to the Post, out of the 50 reported cases, only 14 alleged perpetrators have been apprehended. This surge in random assaults, totaling 95 incidents, marks a 12.8 percent increase compared to the same period in 2023.
Thirty-seven of these assaults transpired on the streets, while 13 occurred within the transit system, heightening concerns among New Yorkers.
The city’s subway system has been marred by several high-profile criminal cases, prompting worries about safety and security.
In a failed attempt to address these concerns, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul deployed state police and the National Guard to conduct random searches and oversee entrances to heavily frequented train stations.
These assaults come at a time when DA Bragg faces intense scrutiny for seemingly prioritizing the prosecution of Trump, a decision criticized for its dubious charges and rare legal theory.
The widespread apprehension regarding safety was acknowledged by Bragg himself during an interview with Fox 5 New York.
Despite crime statistics indicating a slight decrease in transit crime in July 2023, Bragg admitted, “I know the statistics that transit crime is down, but when one of my family members gets on the train, I, too, get a knot in my stomach.”
