A routine try to discover a parking spot in Queens escalated right into a savage bodily and verbal assault, caught on a viral video and resulting in the arrest of a person and daughter. The incident, which unfolded on a Ridgewood avenue, noticed a Black feminine driver assaulted by a household allegedly “hoarding” a public parking area.
The sufferer, 21-year-old Tempo College pupil Jada McPherson, mentioned she was attempting to park outdoors 18-28 Putnam Ave. on Monday when two males and one girl, later recognized as Andreea Dumitru, 45, and his daughter Sabrina Starman, 21, have been guarding the spot. In line with McPherson, the unidentified man positioned a trash can within the area to stop her from parking.
When McPherson, unable to search out one other spot, returned to inform the household they couldn’t declare a public area, the scenario turned violent. McPherson mentioned the person went “ballistic,” and the father-daughter duo unleashed a barrage of racist insults. Within the video, Dumitru is heard yelling, “You’re a monkey, bitch,” whereas his daughter, Starman, follows with, “You’re a f—ing slave bitch.”
The verbal assault shortly turned bodily. Starman allegedly lunged at McPherson, with each she and her father pulling her hair and flinging punches. “They have been attempting to actually rip my hair out of my scalp,” McPherson mentioned, including that she “positively did concern for my life.” The person who was additionally concerned within the altercation reportedly fled the scene earlier than police arrived.
Following the assault, Dumitru and Starman have been arrested and charged with first-degree assault and second-degree harassment. McPherson in the end managed to park within the contested spot however has been left on edge and plans to maneuver out of the neighborhood this weekend. “Leaping one individual for a parking area is basically not proper,” she said.
The incident has dropped at gentle a simmering rigidity within the Ridgewood neighborhood, the place locals say that “parking area hoarding” is a standard challenge. Neighbors informed The Publish that the household concerned within the brawl was a infamous offender, utilizing site visitors cones and different objects to assert public areas.
“Somebody is at all times there, holding the spot,” mentioned George Carrasquillo, 53, who lives throughout the road. “I’ve to take my kick scooter with me to drop the automobile off… and should see all this, their stunning spot saved. Isn’t this public parking?”
Andreea Dumitru and Sabrina Starman have since employed a lawyer, Mahmoud Rabah, who says they plan to struggle the costs in court docket in September. Rabah contends that McPherson “instigate[d] an altercation with threatening habits and vile and hurtful language” and that his shoppers have obtained dying threats for the reason that video went public.