A woman waiting for help from a tow truck was shot in the leg as two rival tow truck companies fought over her vehicle, according to a report.
The woman, Susy Delgado, told the New York Daily News that the incident started after a speeding Range Rover hit her parked car. Then the rival tow trucks showed up, each looking to hook up her car.
But Delgado didn’t call either of the companies, according to the news outlet. In fact, she believes they only found out she was in need of a tow truck by monitoring police scanners.
“I’m lucky that bullet didn’t take my life,” said Delgado. “I don’t know what this world is coming to.”
“We don’t even know who the owner of that car was,” she said, explaining that the Range Rover’s driver was part of a group of young men speeding in the area. After the crash, he reportedly abandoned the vehicle and escaped in another.
“The tow truck workers who later showed up got into a fierce quarrel over who would get to tow Delgado’s wrecked car, and the fight quickly escalated,” New York Daily News reported. “One of the workers whipped a gun out of his pocket and fired multiple times at his rival — but hit his would-be customer instead.”
“They were arguing over it and then one of the guys wanted to get into a fight — and one of the guys took out the gun and starting shooting,” Delgado said. “I heard the bullets and when I turned around that’s when it hit me.”
Delgado was hit in her right thigh when she was trying to hide.
“I felt the pain in my leg,” she said. “I fell down. My husband was right next to me. He was trying to calm me down. … I was praying I would be able to see my kids again.”
“I was screaming ‘I need help!’” Delgado said. “I was bleeding like crazy. The bullet went through — came through one side and went out through the back.”
Violent crime continues to surge in New York City. The overall crime rate for the city was up 11.2% in October compared to the previous year.
Despite the NYPD celebrating an apparent drop in shootings and murders, a broad range of other violent crimes are growing in number, including felony assaults and robberies.
“The number of robberies jumped 15.8% (1,450 v. 1,252) and felonious assaults increased by 13.8% (2,123 v. 1,865) year-over-year,” local outlet Fox 5 reported. “Grand Larceny and auto thefts were also up sharply in October compared to the same period last year. Auto thefts are up almost 15% for the year versus 2020.”
“Gun arrests have jumped 13.9% this year compared to this point in 2020. There were 382 gun arrests in the city in October,” the outlet continued. “Burglaries saw a 13.7% decrease in October 2021. There were 1,241 last month compared to 1,427 in October 2020.”