New York

Several women have lately reported being assaulted in New York City. The incidents gained a lot of attention on TikTok after women posted pics, videos with bruises on their face, claiming someone punched them in the face.

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Halley Kate, a TikTok influencer with more than 1 million followers, posted a video detailing her horrific experience of being randomly attacked. She described how the hit caused her to fall to the ground, resulting in a visible bump on her head.

On Wednesday (March 27) night, the NYPD acknowledged its awareness of a widely shared video in a statement. The accused Skiroky Stora, 40, was then taken into custody and charged with the attack. 

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Halley Kate was walking down Chelsea's West 16th Street when she fell, according to police, after Stora smacked her in the head. Stora was walking his dog at the time of the attack, according to Kate's TikTok video.

Authorities revealed that Stora had previously been accused of attacking other women.

Kate's video served as a catalyst for other women on TikTok to share their own experiences of random attacks. One such individual, Mikayla Toninato, posted a video on the same day, tagging Kate and recounting a similar incident that occurred to her.

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"I was looking down at my phone, texting, and then, out of nowhere, this man just came up and hit me in the face," Toninato explained in the video.

It is unclear whether Toninato filed a police report or if the NYPD launched an investigation into the incident.

Billionaire Elon Musk also raised concern on women being punched randomly by strangers in New York City. 

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The Tesla CEO was reacting to a video Halley Kate, a TikTok user, who uploaded a video on Monday following one of the assaults currently under investigation by New York Police. In the video, Ms Kate, with 1.1 million followers on TikTok, said she was walking when a "man came up and punched me in the face". Many other women have shared similar stories of being unexpectedly punched while walking.

"Failure to prosecute crime in New York and many other US cities allows violent criminals to assault women at will! The governor had to call out the national guard just so people could ride the subway," Musk said while sharing a post on X.

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(With inputs from agencies)