Elena Sobina sought out a quiet area in an upper Manhattan park in New York where she thought she could breastfeed her infant daughter discretely and in private. She was sitting on a bench in Fort Tryon Park with her six-month-old daughter when she felt the presence of another person behind her.
She was then reportedly pushed off the bench and held at knifepoint by a stranger, who grabbed her phone and purse and fled the scene.
Although mostly uninjured, Sobina’s daughter reportedly was left with a cut lip during the incident.
Sobina said she tried to run after the perpetrator, but quickly realized it was better and safer to get help. She was able to get a bystander to call the police, who were able to track the suspect using Sobina’s Find My iPhone app.
Police found and identified the suspect as 31-year-old Juan Garcia.
Garcia was arrested nearby and has been charged with robbery, grand larceny, criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of stolen property and endangering the welfare of a child.
Sobina, who had tried to find a private place to nurse her infant now wants to warn other mothers not to isolate themselves while the breastfeed.
“I just want to warn everybody who is trying to find a quiet place and be by herself, don’t do that,” Sobina told ABC News. “It’s not a good idea.”
