Suspect arrested for mace attack on man, girl

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Police in the Bronx have arrested a man accused of assaulting another man and then spraying him and his 6-year-old daughter with mace.

The whole incident was caught on camera.

The assault happened inside a Laundromat on White Plains Road in the Wakefield section on Saturday at 6:10 p.m.

The suspect, 27-year-old Fernando Gonzalez, turned himself into police at 8:20 p.m. on Monday. He's now facing an assault charge.

Rita Ferguson was there on Saturday and says she witnessed what happened.

"It was really, really awful," Ferguson said, "The way he beat that man was horrible."

On camera, the suspect was videotaped punching the victim over and over again.

According to witnesses the victim was in the Laundromat with a woman and his 6-year-old daughter.

You can see someone tried to intervene as the man pounded the victim, but the suspect continued the assault and then according to police sprayed the victim and his 6-year-old daughter with mace.

But witnesses tell Eyewitness News that the suspect sprayed the mace in the direction of others in the Laundromat as well.

"He started spraying, we thought it was a gun or something," Ferguson said.

11-year-old Star Mercer was also inside and she says she ended up having to go to the hospital as well.

"I inhaled it, I couldn't breathe," Mercer said.

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new york city, assault, child injured, bronx, wakefield, new york news, jeff pegues

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