Video footage has emerged of a woman being beaten with planks as she attempted to defend her store from looters, as riots and chaos grip the streets of many US cities, following the police killing of George Floyd.
CCTV footage of the incident, reported earlier, shows the woman confronting at least six men outside the Rochester Fire Equipment Company in upstate New York. The gang approach the woman aggressively and batter on the store doors and windows with planks. One of the men is seen throwing a ladder at the door before the group begin to move on and walk away.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, one of the group turns around abruptly and begins repeatedly punching the woman. Another man joins in, repeatedly hitting her with a plank.
Footage with sound, taken from another angle by local man Joe Painter, appears to show the woman saying something as the men walk away, with some posters online suggesting whatever she said somehow provoked the savage attack.
Painter’s video also shows the woman’s husband emerging from the store, shouting, “Get away from my wife!” and attempting but failing to beat back the looters with a metal bar.
The video is the latest in a number of disturbing incidents seen across the US, as protests sparked by the brutal police killing of George Floyd morphed into violence and vandalism.
Painter told local ABC affiliate WHAM-TV that the incident was “one of the most disturbing things” he has ever witnessed. He told the outlet that the woman was taken away by ambulance. The Rochester Police Department is now seeking the public’s help to identify the men in the video, and has posted still images of the alleged assailants on Twitter.
Like this story? Share it with a friend!