The police initiated an investigation after a Korean-American woman in her 50s was assaulted by a woman who appeared to be homeless.
A 54-year-old Korean woman, identified only by her surname Chung, was attacked while riding her bicycle for her morning exercise near Twila Reid Park, close to her home, on the morning of June 16 at approximately 7:30 a.m.
Chung reported to the Korea Daily that she was unexpectedly hit from behind by a bicycle ridden by a woman of a different ethnicity, causing her to fall along with her bicycle. Immediately following the collision, Chung was subjected to an unprovoked assault.
“I heard the sound of a bicycle approaching from behind, so I moved onto the grass,” Chung, who requested anonymity, said in a phone interview with the Korea Daily. “Shortly after, the collision occurred. While I was still on the ground in my cycling position, a Latina woman with red hair, appearing to be in her 30s, approached and struck my head and back approximately five times with her fists. She also stomped on my thigh, which was stuck under the bicycle.”
Chung further explained, “Although there were a few people nearby, no one came to help me. My husband, who had come with me and was walking on the other side of the park, ran over, but the woman who attacked me escaped on her bicycle before he could catch her.”
Chung managed to photograph the assailant’s retreating figure with her cell phone. A nearby couple also captured a video of the suspect fleeing the scene. The police, responding to the couple’s report, received these images and videos and have begun identifying the suspect’s identity and location.
“The assailant was carrying a backpack and had several shopping bags attached to her bicycle,” Chung said. “I think she might be a homeless individual from the nearby. This is the first time something like this has happened in the five years I have been exercising in the park. I have developed a mental trauma and sometimes feel sudden fear when I go outside.”
Twila Reid Park is a small park located near a residential area. It is very close to Twila Reid Elementary School. “I decided to report this incident because I hope no other Korean person falls victim in this park, which is in an area where many Koreans reside,” Chung said.
BY SANGHWAN LIM, YOUNGNAM KIM [lim.sanghwan@koreadaily.com]
