A professional mermaid and former Muay Thai boxer visiting New Orleans for a scuba diving expo fought off a man posing as her rideshare driver, suffering a concussion and facial fractures in a violent Canal Street struggle.
Luma, who asked to be identified by her first name only and goes by The Mermaid Atlantis on social media, suffered blunt-force trauma, a concussion and a fracture to the bridge of her nose during the attack in the 1500 block of Canal Street around 5:40 a.m. Friday.
As of Tuesday, the assailant remained at large, NOPD said, and Luma’s story ricocheted across social media after she posted about the assault, hoping to raise awareness about the little-known faux-driver scheme that has snared New Orleans victims in the past.
On Thursday night, Luma, who had traveled from San Francisco for the Diving Equipment & Marketing Association conference, went out to the Quarter with old and new dive friends. Time got away from her, and at around 5 a.m., she decided to “be safe” and call a Lyft, though she was just a few blocks from her hotel.
A short time later, a black sedan matching the app’s description pulled up. She stepped behind the vehicle to check its license plate.
“The driver … popped out of the car and tore my bag out of my hands,” Luma said.
Another person might have surrendered their possessions. But Luma, who is a former professional Muay Thai boxer, a former EMT and a domestic violence survivor, said PTSD triggered her fight response. She kicked her assailant away, climbed into the driver’s seat and hurled his key fob across the street, hoping to keep him from leaving while she called police.
“And then he really lost it,” Luma said.
The man punched the left side of her head while pulling her out of the vehicle, she said, adding that he repeatedly slammed her face into the concrete, then jumped up and down on her head.
“He fought like a brawler,” Luma said. “Not many people can hit me to the point I can feel it.”
The assailant eventually fled. Believing she had recovered all her belongings, Luma crawled several blocks down the street on her stomach, leaving a trail of blood. She later discovered her wallet was missing.
She managed to call 911 and said she was unconscious at University Medical Center for the next day and a half. New Orleans police were unable to obtain a statement because of the extent of her injuries, according to public information officer Karen Boudrie. For that reason, the police report is currently incomplete.
Luma is now recuperating at home in the Bay Area. She expects it will be more than a month before she is medically cleared to dive again.
“I don’t blame New Orleans in and of itself. I think the people and culture are beautiful,” Luma said. ‘I want to put pressure on NOPD to have a response, not only to my situation, but to every situation. I would like to see some good come out of this.”
Anyone with information about this crime, or who has information about suspicious rideshare activity, can contact NOPD at 504-821-2222 or Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111, as well as the rideshare company.
Source: www.nola.com
