PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — A brutal and unprovoked attack was caught on camera. Three women were walking along an East Passyunk sidewalk minding their own business when a man comes alongside and begins to punch them. The brutal assault happened Wednesday night on the 1200 block of Morris Street and has left the neighborhood on edge.
The attacker didn’t take a thing from his victims, casually walking off when it was over. We do want to warn you that this video is difficult to watch.
“I heard screaming,” a neighbor said.
Three women were walking down the 1200 block of Morris Street Wednesday night shortly before 11:30 p.m. when an unknown man came up from behind and, out of nowhere, struck one of them in the face with such force she fell to the ground. As her friend tries to step in, he punches her in the head and knocked her against a parked car, where he goes in for another hit. When the third woman tries to stop him, he pins her against a wall and starts swinging until she stumbles backward onto the sidewalk.
“They were screaming so loud,” a neighbor said. “They were screaming for their lives.”
Neighbors who heard and saw the attack are still reeling from it all.
“It was just ridiculous the way he was beating that young lady. And the other two ladies, they were helpless,” a neighbor said. “They tried their best. Two of them jumped on him and he threw them to the ground.”
As for how the unprovoked attack started, the man paced for a moment, appearing to charge toward one of the women, only to keep going past her.
“It was just amazing. He just stopped and casually walked down the street,” a neighbor said.
Police arrived a few minutes later, but the man got away.
Why he did it is still unknown.
“Just to know you can be doing absolutely nothing and get attacked, it’s really scary,” Emily said.
Now, this community is left to wonder if he’ll try something like this again.
“I’m at the point when it gets dark, I just don’t leave my house,” Emily said.
The women were treated for their injuries at the hospital.
Police are asking for the public’s help to identify the man who did this as their investigation continues.
* Article from: 3CBS Philly