Shocking moment Asian woman is dragged by car along San Francisco street after being attacked and punched in the face by purse-snatchers
- Woman named Clarisse was walking home after church on Sunday when she was accosted by three young men who snatched her purse
- Clarisse refused to let go of her bag and was punched three times in the face
- She then grabbed onto attackers’ getaway car and was dragged along the street before the vehicle lurched and she fell
- Clarisse suffered bruises and cuts to her face, arm, hand and foot
An Asian-American woman was repeatedly punched in the face and left with bruises all over her body after being attacked by a trio of purse-snatchers and dragged behind their car along a street in San Francisco.
A portion of the incident that took place on Sunday was caught on a bystander’s cellphone video, which shows the victim, who identified herself only as Clarisse, holding onto the thugs’ speeding car before being thrown off and landing in the middle of the road.
Clarisse told KGO-TV she was walking with a friend in broad daylight after attending a church service when she was accosted by three young men at the intersection of Polk and Bush streets.
A woman named Clarisse was walking in San Francisco after church on Sunday when she was accosted by three men, one of whom grabbed her purse. The screenshot on the left from a bystander’s video show the victim next to the thieves’ car
Despite being punched in the face three times, Clarisse grabbed onto the thugs’ getaway vehicle in a desperate bid to get her handbag back
One of the suspects grabbed Clarisse’s bag, but she refused to let go of it and was punched in the face three times.
Determined to retrieve her belongings, Clarisse grabbed onto the thieves’ getaway vehicle and was dragged a short distance before the sedan suddenly lurched forward, causing the woman to lose her grip and fall.
Clarisse sustained an injury to her right eye, bruises on her face and arm, and cuts on her hand and foot.
The suspects dragged the woman, seen clinging to the driver’s side, a short distance
When the car lurched forward, Clarisse lost her grip and fell to the ground (pictured)
A witness recorded the incident on his cellphone from a nearby building. Clarisse is seen kneeling in the middle of the street after falling off the car
Addressing her attackers directly, the woman said: ‘I forgive you and I want you to really hope and pray you get what you need out of life but not in a way that’s criminal.’
While Clarisse is Asian-American, she said she is not sure the attack on her was racially motivated, although her companion who was walking with her at the time of the mugging believes it was.
Clarisse suffered bruises and cuts to her eye, face, arm, hand and foot, but said she forgives her attackers
The woman was beaten and robbed on the same day when rallies were held across the United States protesting against hate crimes targeting Asian-Americans.
There has been a wave of violence and harassment directed at Asians since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, including multiple random attacks in New York City and San Francisco.
A 25-year-old Asian woman was urinated on and an elderly Sri Lankan man was punched in the face in two separate incidents that took place just a couple of days apart in the New York City subway.
In San Francisco, a 70-year-old Asian woman was attacked by a white man in his 30s, but she was able to fight him off with a wooden stick and ended up putting her assailant in the hospital last week.
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