Saturday 18 February 2023

San Jose street vendor who was attacked outside of SAP Center speaks out

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) -- We are hearing from a street vendor who was attacked outside the SAP Center in San Jose on Thursday-- apparently over a hot dog.

The fight was captured on cell phone video and shared on social media. KRON4 spoke with the victim on Saturday. That street vendor is recovering at home, he says he is still in pain and the suspect is still out there.

Cell phone video captured the moment Saul Reconco was brutally kicked in the face outside the SAP Center Reconco says before the beating, he had a disagreement with the suspected attacker.

"He started telling me I bought a couple hot dogs from you and now you're supposed to give me a free hot dog or free soda and I told him I can't do it," the street vendor said.

Reconco says an argument ensued, and the suspect threw beer on his face and on his grill. He says the suspect left and then returned.

"He came from behind and hit me and punched me on the face," Reconco said.

Reconco went to the hospital that night and suffered a broken nose, black eye, swollen face and a bad headache.

San Jose police say the incident happened Thursday just before 11:45 p.m. Reconco and his wife were selling hot dogs after a concert.

"It's very heartbreaking. It's a loss of words," said witness Kim Lara. Lara witnessed the attack and captured it on cell phone video.

"If I wouldn't have recorded this, this would have been just swept under the rug, and the man would gone home you know with bruises all over his face," Lara said.

Reconco is now left with a high hospital bill, he has no health insurance and will be out of work to recover.

"No matter what, any street vendors need to have respect from everybody," he said.

The victim says he is thankful for the bystanders and witnesses who helped that night. San Jose police say the incident has been assigned to an investigator.

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SAP Center addressed the incident in a statement below.

“Safety at SAP Center events continues to be our top priority. We continue to actively communicate with City officials to ensure that public spaces outside of the arena are safe for all guests. We will continue to prioritize this issue until an adequate solution is reached.”



from KRON4 https://ift.tt/fs6YVex


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