Some states and cities are just known for being hot spots for more negative connotations, like harassment and theft. Unfortunately, these actions affect people in all sorts of ways, and can absolutely be traumatizing for some. An NYU student in New York City, New York, went to TikTok to share a horrifying encounter she had with a homeless person who had both sexually harassed and assaulted her. Now, she’s advocating for herself and every other young girl in NYC who might go through the same thing.
The above video was posted to TikTok by @amelia.lewis506, which belongs to NYU student Amelia Lewis. In the video, she talks to the camera through tears about something that had happened to her earlier in the day because, “I decided to make myself feel better. Like, I feel, like, talking about it and letting other people know and be aware will make myself feel better.”
She then recounts a situation in which she was walking to school at 9 am, with her headphones over her head. It wasn’t long before she had started the walk when suddenly, she felt someone slap her rear. Assuming it was a friend, she turned around to tell them that the slap hurt. However, instead of a friend, she found a white man, reportedly homeless, with a beard, standing there.
Immediately after being seen, the man allegedly grabbed Amelia by the hair and started to tackle her to the ground. While she was incapacitated and confused, the man took the opportunity to run away.
New York Homeless Man Attacks NYU Student
Fortunately, witnesses were nearby and went to Amelia shortly after she had been thrown on the floor. According to the story, a few girls came to check on her physically, and a man helped her call the police and file a report. Commentators were quick to reply with their own opinions, though some decided to come up with answers instead.
According to the top post, the man who hit Amelia has done this before, “James Rizzo, 45, has 16 prior arrests including being charged with [expletive] in 1997. NYC court system is a joke.” Others chimed in to also confirm the information, stating that it’s ridiculous to have someone walking free who has been arrested 16 times.
Other top comments in this vein included, “the concept of a man walking free after being arrested 16 times,” and “mind you he’s been arrested SIXTEEN times 🤦🏼♀️.” Fortunately, Amelia appears to be okay and, as mentioned before, was able to file a police report. Hopefully, James, if that really is his name, will be caught and detained soon enough.
