Cincinnati viral beating victim says violent mob started attacking ‘like a pack of wolves’
Single mother of three suffered severe concussion and neurological damage during intervention
Viral Cincinnati attack victim speaks out amid recovery from violent beating
Holly speaks with Fox News Digital about the caught-on-camera attack in downtown Cincinnati on July 26 that left her with severe injuries and forced her into hiding. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
CINCINNATI, OH – The woman seen being violently slammed to the ground in now-viral footage of a brutal beatdown in downtown Cincinnati is speaking out after being forced into hiding following her near-death experience that was seen nationwide.
Holly, an Ohio native and single mother of three, was enjoying a night out celebrating a friend’s birthday when she called an Uber to head home. As she was waiting for her ride, several fights broke out on the corner of Fourth and Elm Streets in the city’s downtown area around 3 a.m. on July 26.
Footage obtained by Fox News Digital shows an unidentified man yelling racial slurs while being beaten in the street. Additional video of the scene shows the male victim slapping a member of the group seconds before the fight escalated.
Holly, a victim in the viral July 26 Cincinnati brawl, poses for a photo. The single mother sustained life-altering injuries after trying to break up a brutal beatdown that left six people injured and ended in six arrests. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
“And then that’s when everyone, like a pack of wolves, just jumped in and started attacking,” Holly said.
“I heard a man crying on the street, [and] he looked at me and held out his hand,” Holly said. “And [he] literally said, ‘Please, God, help me. Help me please, God.’ You can’t hear it in any of the videos because all you can hear is everybody on the street cheering each other on to curb-stomp these people, and to kick them and punch them and attack them while they were down.”
Bystander footage shows Holly running between two men as the fight broke out, in an attempt to stop the brutal beating.
Holly was violently thrown to the ground and knocked unconscious when she tried to break up the brutal fight. (Tricia Mackie / Fox 19 on X; X/@Anthea06274890)
“I felt it was necessary to at least jump in, and try to help and save this man’s life,” Holly said. “It looked like they were about to kill him, to me. And that’s why I couldn’t stand there and do nothing.”
“It was just ungodly. I cannot shake the images. It goes on a loop over and over. It keeps replaying. It was very traumatic.”
In the chaos, Holly was viciously slammed to the ground.
“I remember being afraid, terrified,” Holly told Fox News Digital. “I just remember my life flashing before my eyes, and all I can think is, ‘Dear God, I hope my children know that I love them.’”
Video of the incident shows the single mother laying unconscious on the asphalt as blood pours from her mouth, with another individual eventually coming over to help her up. She quickly retreated to her Uber and went home, where she “slept off her concussion.”
WATCH: Video of the racial slur yelled during the Cincinnati beatdown emerges
“The next day when I woke up, my whole face was black and blue and swollen,” Holly said. “I remember trying to take a drink and everything poured out because it was so swollen.”
Holly recalled thinking she looked like a “horrible monster” upon seeing her face in the mirror, adding that the memory “haunts” her.
Holly, a victim in the viral July 26 Cincinnati brawl, poses for a photo. The single mother sustained life-altering injuries after trying to break up a brutal beatdown that left six people injured and ended in six arrests. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
