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2006 “Survivor: Fiji” contestant Michelle Yi was stabbed with a metal baton in Santa Monica on Thursday morning. Police officials confirmed that the alleged assailant had also attacked two other people previously.
The 37-year-old victim narrated the incident to People magazine. Michelle Yi recollected herself arriving at 6 a.m. at her Pilates studio, where she regularly taught classes. As her students began to arrive, Yi noticed an uncombed woman approaching the front door. Yi said:
"She was yelling all sorts of things like, 'You stole my identity' and, 'You're a prostitute.' Santa Monica has a homeless problem, and I've dealt with this type of thing before. So I told her, 'Ma'am, you can't be here. You need to leave.'"
Following Yi’s stern orders, the agitated woman refused to leave. She ended up lunging at her with a knife and metal baton. Yi recalled:
"She stabbed me in the left bicep. And then she hit me on the right hand with the baton. My Apple Watch shattered."
Yi added that one of her students attempted to call the police at that time, but the operators stated that they were “currently busy.” A few minutes later, they were able to locate a police car on the street.
Attack leaves Michelle Yi with several stitches on the face
Michelle Yi happens to be one of the youngest contestants to compete in the Survivor Fiji competition series. She was also the only Asian-American contestant born in the States to compete in Fiji.
Following the police officials appearing at the location of the incident, it was reported that the assailant was still on the scene. Lieutenant Rudy Flores from the Santa Monica Police Department stated:
"The officers took her into custody and interviewed the victims and the witnesses."
Michelle Yi was then taken to the hospital for an X-ray where she was notified that there were no fractures. However, she left the hospital with several stitches on her face.
Michelle Yi said that the harasser was a white lady who had attacked an Asian man and a person of color on the same morning. Yi mentioned:
"I can't prove whether it was racially motivated or not, but she was screaming all sorts of awful things at me. The facts are what they are.”
Inspector Flores said:
“It appeared that she was mentally unstable and maybe off her medication. That probably caused her to do what she did."
Reacting to the horrific crime, many netizens took to Twitter to express their frustration. Many deemed the incident to be an Asian hate crime. Tweets read:
Michelle Yi's attacker held in police custody
The Santa Monica Police Department released mugshots of Alexandria Diaz following her rampage that left Yi severely injured. She has been charged with three counts of assault along with a deadly weapon.
The 25-year-old remains in police custody. Although it appears the attacks took place with the intent of a hate crime, she has not been charged for the same.
Yi revealed in the interview that she was recovering from the assault but remains emotionally shaken following the unfortunate incident.
