New Yorkers endure random attacks as top cop focuses on Trump indictment

Former President Donald Trump is expected in a New York City court Tuesday to be arraigned after Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg secured an indictment in connection with alleged hush payments to adult actress Stormy Daniels. 

However, Bragg's pursuit of the former president, the first in history to be charged with a crime, comes as he faces criticism for far-left political policies perceived as soft on crime. Residents have been subjected to violent attacks, a trend seemingly relentless since COVID-19 hit the Big Apple in March 2020.

A Manhattan grand jury indicted Trump last week after Bragg's office conducted a years-long investigation.

The same alleged hush money payments that are central to Bragg's indictment of Trump were also investigated by the Federal Election Commission and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, Fox News Digital has reported.

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Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York declined to charge Trump in connection with one of the alleged payments in 2019, even as former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen implicated him as part of his own plea deal. The FEC also dropped its investigation in 2021.

NYC crime victims speak out

Maria Danzilo, a former candidate for New York's state Senate, told Fox News Digital she was attacked last month in the city's famed Central Park by a stranger without provocation.

She was walking her dog, Willow, in Central Park when the man approached. She was distracted on the phone and raised her hand defensively, she said. He "slugged" her in the arm and strolled off.

There are many questions around how the district attorney is deciding what to prosecute and what not to prosecute. We're not getting good data on cases that are being dismissed.

— Maria Danzilo, NYC crime victim

The longtime lawyer said she did not believe she was qualified to talk about whether the first indictment in history of a former president was a good idea, but concedes New York has "serious problems" of its own when it comes to public safety and the priorities of city leaders.

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"People are so concerned with the direction that we're going in" she said. 

There's a real concern that the DA is not focused on doing his job as the No. 1 issue of keeping people safe in New York.

— Maria Danzilo, NYC crime victim

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While the suspect remains at large, she praised the NYPD's handling of the case and lamented Mayor Eric Adams' struggles with city and state legislators following a bail reform law that critics say puts criminals back on the streets nearly immediately to commit new crimes.

"If you want to stand for public safety, you have to actually provide public safety," she said. "And we're not doing that when you have people in broad daylight going around sucker punching people."

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Other brazen attacks have taken place in broad daylight.

Gas station ambush

On Sunday, a 28-year-old Manhattan gas station worker told ABC News that a random man came into his store, spat in his face and then slashed him across the cheek before fleeing on a scooter. He had to get stitches and was pictured with a long scar across the right side of his face.

Parking garage terror

On Saturday, a burglary suspect allegedly shot a garage attendant twice after he was caught scoping out cars in the early morning hours. The attendant wrestled the gun away and shot back, prompting initial charges that included attempted murder.

In a rare reversal, Bragg's office announced it would not prosecute the worker after word of the incident attracted public scrutiny.

Biker beatdown

Last week, an off-duty New York City police officer was walking his dog when he asked a speeding motorcyclist to slow down, according to the New York Post. The rider allegedly punched him in the face, grappled him to the ground and continued the assault before he rode off.

The officer was reportedly treated for a broken ankle and cuts to his face and head.

Journalist jumped

PBS reporter Jane Ferguson tweeted last week that she had been attacked by a stranger on a packed subway car.

"A man walked up to me in a busy rush-hour car and punched me, hard, on the side of the face," she wrote. "I kneeled down on the floor in shock, and steadied myself, unsure what had just happened, my ear ringing and face on fire."

Sidewalk stabbing

And on March 21, police say a 32-year-old woman was putting her trash to the curb when a man walked up and stabbed her in the shoulder.  The suspect was later caught on subway surveillance video.

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The NYPD's Manhattan crime statistics show most major crimes, including homicide and robbery, have plateaued or begun to declined compared to last year, however felony assaults continued to climb as of Friday.

Trump is expected to be arraigned Tuesday at a Manhattan court following enhanced security preparations assisted by the U.S. Secret Service.

After Bragg took office last year, he issued a controversial "Day 1" memo in which he called on prosecutors in his office to seek non-prison punishments for some crimes and to reduce pre-trial incarceration where possible.

Read Alvin Bragg's Day 1 memo (Mobile users go here)

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With some exceptions, it also directed prosecutors to charge some violent felonies as misdemeanors and not to go after criminals accused of turnstile jumping, resisting arrest, trespassing or driving without a license.

Fox News' Brooke Singman, Landon Mion and Stephanie Pagones contributed to this report.