There is a reason why most parking lots, especially bigger ones, have security cameras and even roving security guards. Parking lots have the potential to be dangerous places for women. Parking lots, no matter where they are, have the major key ingredients for a sexual assault. They offer hiding places for the perpetrators among and between cars and victims who are often distracted by any number of diversions, not to mention the fact that many parking lots are poorly lit.
In today’s story we are highlighting recent examples of assaults that occurred in parking lots to emphasize how dangerous parking lots can be, especially for women.
Our first example comes from Knoxville, Tennessee where police are looking for a suspect who assaulted an employee of the local Bed Bath and Beyond store in their parking lot. When the woman was leaving the store she was approached by an assailant demanding her purse. When she refused to hand over her purse, the man hit her in the hand with his gun while attempting to steal the purse. When the woman screamed the suspect fled in a white vehicle that was possibly a hatchback. The victim was taken to the hospital for a possible broken bone and hand injury.
In Cheektowaga, NY a woman was assaulted by an unknown African-American female assailant in a parking space dispute in the Walden Galleria shopping area. The victim was punched so badly that her eyes filled with blood and her vision became blurred. People who witnessed the attack came to help her. She was rushed to a nearby hospital where she got nine stitches. Apparently mall security was nowhere to be found.
Over in India a famous Bollywood actor, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, has become embroiled in a parking space dispute with one of his neighbors. The neighbor was trying to take pictures but was assaulted by one of the actor’s bodyguards. To date there has been no investigation into the case by local police.
In Athens, Ohio the local police department is linking DNA evidence of two separate but related violent assaults in local parking lots. The two cases are 9 years apart yet the DNA evidence points to the same suspect. Both incidents happened early in the morning. In the latest incident the suspect was scared off by others in the area.
We wonder if the victims in these stories had been carrying pepper sprays to defend themselves what would’ve happened. Any one of our close to 200 Pepper Sprays can disable an assailant for as much as 45 minutes making them an excellent choice for self-defense. Prices start as low as $4.95.
Have you ever been assaulted in a parking lot? How did you defend yourself? Please share your experience with us so that our readers can benefit.