Exclusive: Bronx bodega worker speaks out after hammer attack
FORDHAM, The Bronx (PIX11) -- It has been exactly a month since Bronx Bodega worker, Oralia Abad, was viciously smashed in the head with a hammer by two individuals.
His mother spoke out for the first time and exclusively with PIX11’s Eliecer Marte, about this moment that has scarred her and her family forever. Abad said that Saturday morning she was planning to buy her daughter a dress for her middle school graduation. However she ended up in the hospital following this attack and her daughter had to graduate without Abad being there. This mother also says, doctors told her, she is lucky she did not die.
Oralia Abad had just gotten home from the hospital after running some blood tests, before sitting down with us. She will undergo surgery tomorrow for a broken eye and nose.
“I see double, and color yellow, I got headache, dizziness,” said Abad.
She said she is also suffering from memory loss. Although she said she can’t remember exactly what happened the morning of June 22, Abad was brutally attacked in the face with a sledgehammer by a couple, while she was working at “A & D Deli Grocery” on East 188 street in the Bronx.
“When I showed the face to my husband, he was very surprised and I’m asking what happened, he tells me “oh flaca your eyes.” When I touched, I see a lot of blood,” she added.
Police say the two individuals who attacked Abad were shoplifting and demanded their money back for a hookah they purchased. A female has been arrested. A male suspect remains at large.
“He is bad for the community and the 188. A lot of people they say he is bad. They are regular customers,” stated Abad.
The 41-year-old mother of three, including a one-year-old boy, was rushed to the emergency room at St. Barnabas Hospital where she remained for four days to become stable. She plans on going back to work but doesn’t know if that would be possible any time soon.
“Right now, I am scared. I don’t like to go outside on the street by myself,” Abad said.
Bodega owners and workers have been calling for the state to invest in security, including $5 million dollars that New York Governor Kathy Hochul promised to these establishments back in April.
“Do you believe that if you had a panic button, the situation would’ve turned out different?,” PIX11 News asked Abad.
“Yes, I know, because you have something for the help, you push,” she responded.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams went to visit Abad after she was released from the hospital.
“I asked him for the buttons and he said he will try to help me.”
Abad is also dealing with medical bills, including the surgery scheduled for July 23. A GoFundMe page has been created to help her with these costs.