A brave 7-year-old girl had her throat cut by an old man and is now sharing her story in an interview.
Police said Saida Mashlash, 7, was playing at Ryan Park in Detroit around 3:45 p.m. Tuesday. The innocent girl was not at all worried when she saw a man walking in her direction.
“When I was playing, I saw him as a man.” Saida told WXYZ Detroit“I said 'hello' to him.”
Authorities say Gary Lansky, 73, didn't have time to stop because of her politeness, grabbed the girl by the head and pulled out a pocket knife.
“And he just raised my head and he just slid the knife down my throat,” Saida told the station on Thursday.
The courageous girl said she gave her attacker a “medium force” kick and ran away before he could hurt her any further.
She ran from the playground toward the house, blood dripping along several blocks, with her grandmother behind her. Neighbors of the family said they sprang into action as soon as they heard the girl's screams.
Dona Mokbil and her son live next door to Saida's house and came to help the sick girl.
“She says, 'Oh, I'm going to die and no one's going to come with me,'” Mockbill told reporters, adding: “Tears started to well up in her eyes.”
First responders took Saida to a local hospital, where she received 20 stitches in her throat. It will be deleted within a week.
“They said she was lucky,” said her mother, Amira Sharhan. tells CBS Detroit“She's very lucky. It was a really deep, cut.”
“He came up to her among the children and wondered why her,” Shahan added. I really don't know how to explain it. ”
Gary Lansky was taken into custody and charged with assault with intent to murder and felonious assault, authorities said. His family told investigators they believed he was in a mental health crisis.
The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office says there is no evidence the act was a hate crime, but the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations has called for it to be investigated as a hate crime.
Mr. Lansky is being held on $2 million bail and is scheduled to be released on October 16th.
