On January 23, a New York City mother was caught on surveillance video chasing a man who tried to kidnap her teenage daughter.
The video was obtained by new york post When 18-year-old Rex arrives at her mother’s apartment in Astoria around 9 a.m., footage shows a man grabbing her from behind and dragging her away.
The woman’s screams alarmed her mother, Adriana Alvarez, 35, who can be seen in the video chasing them.
Alvarez said he struggled with the man over four floors until bystanders jumped in to help. She succeeded in fighting him off and rescuing her daughter.
“I’ve never heard my daughter scream like that,” Alvarez told the Post. She said: “I thought the dog might have run downstairs, but when I came outside I saw her daughter being dragged away.”
Alvarez, who weighed only 130 pounds and was 5 feet 4 inches tall, fought a man who was later described as 230 pounds and 6 feet 2 inches tall. He punched her in the face and then pepper sprayed both women.
Alvarez suffered serious injuries, including a dislocated shoulder, a fractured eye socket, and a fractured elbow.
Their screams were heard by another resident of the apartment, who came out and hit the attacker with a stick. Ms. Alvarez used the opportunity to rush her daughter to the men’s unit.
To avoid being locked out, the man stuck his foot in the apartment door and continued chasing the girl.
“I tried to push his legs out of the way and he grabbed me by the hair,” said Alvarez, who was dragged to the entrance of the building.
The two were able to pull away from the attacker and yell for help from others. Another resident came out and helped restrain the man until police arrived.
“I knocked him to the floor,” Gus Bougas told NBC News. “And once I was on top of him, he couldn’t go anywhere.”
The arrested man was identified as 25-year-old George Vasiliu, who worked at the deli with his daughter and was infatuated with her. The girl said the man started following her and she called police twice over the man’s unwanted attention.
An NYPD official told the Post that Vasiliu had rented a car and police found a number of dangerous items inside, including sleeping pills, melatonin and tampons. He also had a rope and a knife, officials said.
Vasiliu is Killed Charges include attempted kidnapping, assault, weapons possession, and robbery.
GoFundMe account The organization was set up to help heroic mothers pay their mounting medical bills and lost wages while they heal before returning to work. More than $35,000 has been raised so far.
“I never imagined something like this would happen to me, especially in my own building. It was really bad,” the mother said.
Video of the attack is below.
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