What to Know
- A 63-year-old woman was walking in Hell's Kitchen around 12:01 a.m. on Jan. 1 when a person she didn't know attacked her
- The attacker punched the woman several times and hit her in the face with a rolling suitcase, the NYPD said
- The attack was caught on video; police said Thursday that a suspect had been arrested
Authorities have arrested a man in connection with the brutal suitcase attack on a 63-year-old woman as she was out celebrating New Year's Eve.
Esther Guzman was walking near West 51st Street and 10th Avenue in Hell's Kitchen around 12:01 a.m. on Jan. 1 when a person she didn't know punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground, police said.
The attacker then struck Guzman in the face with a rolling luggage suitcase and continued to punch her before fleeing, the NYPD said.
Surveillance video captured the disturbing scene unfold as Guzman walked down an often busy sidewalk, returning home from her sister's house nearby. She still had bruises around her eyes more than 10 days later.
"My eyes went 'boom.' I got a big bump here on my eyes, but by the time I know I was bleeding, I came home, left my luggage and I took a cab to the emergency room," Guzman previously told News 4.
News
She said she was afraid to leave her home for weeks. But the news dropped by police on Thursday may change that.
Authorities said 41-year-old Michael Lee, who lives on the street where Guzman was attacked, had been arrested on charges of assault, criminal possession of a weapon and harassment a day earlier. Information on a possible attorney for him wasn't immediately available.
