Residents in a North Oakland neighborhood are rattled after multiple daylight muggings, including one that got really violent.
Security footage caught the moment a woman walking on Hillegass Avenue was attacked after leaving a nearby grocery store.
“Apparently they had grabbed at her two bags, and she held onto her purse so they dragged her on the sidewalk for about 10 to 12 feet and into the street,” said Andrew, who witnesses the attack.
He said he heard the screams from his house and ran outside helping the woman up as the men sped away.
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“I couldn’t believe the violence of what they were doing to this woman just seeing a woman being dragged into the street just for her purse, and the brutality of it just shocked me,” said Andrew.
Just two weeks before, a similar attack took place right around the corner. Two men mugged another woman who was walking home, prying away her purse before running back to a getaway car.
“We used to love going on evening, night walks, and now we don’t anymore so yeah a little stressed,” said Sofia Ruf of North Oakland.
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She and her boyfriend heard the latest victim’s screams. They make sure they walk together now and they too had a scary incident two weeks ago.
“Our roommate and the two of us were walking back from BART like up Claremont, and a couple of guys just cut us off with their car, got out of the car and we didn’t stick around. We just ran,” said Conor Sullivan.
They say another neighbor on Hillegass was recently punched in the face by a man trying to steal his wallet.
“Just try to be aware we don’t have any faith that the police are going to actually do anything,” said Sullivan.
But Andrew says police need to act. He says the level of violence in what used to be a pretty safe neighborhood has gotten out of hand.
“They were willing to do whatever it took to get her bag, including kill her and I think that’s what’s shocking about this and everybody needs to understand that you could be going on a walk and people could want the purse on your back and be willing to kill you for it,” said Andrew.
NBC Bay Area reached out to Oakland police but didn’t hear back.
