A grandmother from Queens, New York City is now fighting for her life after a suspected petty thief sucker-punched her into unconsciousness.
Eve Gentillon, 69, a mother and grandmother of two, was on her way to meet her church friends around 8 a.m. on Saturday when she was hit on the head by a man outside Sutphin King Deli on Sutphin Boulevard in Jamaica, Queens.
She suffered brain haemorrhage from the blow, and began having trouble speaking and breathing on her own, the New York Post reported. She also experienced seizures.
Her daughter Marie said she is now heavily sedated at the ICU of Jamaica Hospital.
Gentillon, a retired home health aide, underwent emergency surgery to remove a bone fragment in her skull. A plate was also placed inside her head after she suffered from a brain aneurysm, which was caused by her fall.
The suspect — identified as 28-year-old former convict Richard Springer — still remained at large. Marie called him "a demon" and said he needed to pay for what he did to her mother. She said the police need to apprehend the attacker so as to make sure he would not harm anyone else.
Police reports showed that Springer, who is also known as "Kwasi," stole a can of Bud Light Lime Straw-Ber-Rita beer worth $3.50 from the deli. While fleeing the scene of the crime, he hit Gentillon across the face. The collision was so strong that Gentillon was knocked out cold.
The attack was caught on video. Gentillon was seen standing outside the deli wearing a hoodie. Springer exited the deli in a rush, and without any provocation at all, he punched Gentillon on the face.
The deli's employee David Lebron told DNAInfo.com that after getting punched, Gentillon laid motionless on the pavement with blood coming out of her mouth.
Before the attack, Springer already got into an altercation with the 18-year-old store clerk over the price of beer. Springer only had a dollar and was outraged that it was priced at $3.50. He then got into a verbal dispute with store worker Methaq Algabyali and punched him in the face.
