Students on Edge Following Flash Mob Assault

Temple students were coming back to campus from Lincoln Financial around 8:30pm on October 21, ready to celebrate the football team’s win over USF.

Nothing prepared sophomore Christina Lauletta for what would cut her night so short.

Lauletta had taken the subway home from the stadium in a group—one of whom was her boyfriend. The group got off at Cecil B. Moore right in front of the Morgan Hall. They then proceeded to walk up Oxford towards Lauletta’s apartment, which is located off campus.

A group of around 30 kids were heading in her group’s direction. The group of juveniles attacked Lauletta and her friends at the corner of Oxford and Carlisle. Lauletta was kicked and stomped on repeatedly. Four of the juveniles were later arrested by police.

Surveillance footage that was released shows someone escorting Lauletta to a pizza shop nearby. When asked, the shop owner described the aftermath of the attack:

“She was frightened. She was clearly beaten, bruised, and bloody. She was shaking and scared. All I could do was give her water and a safe place to sit and a phone to contact someone.”

Lauletta was taken to St. Mary’s Hospital, which was closer to her home. Her father, Joe Lauletta, experienced every parent’s worse nightmare. “You can’t prepare yourself as a parent for that kind of phone call.”

News of the attack went viral after Lauletta’s father posted a Facebook status describing the aftermath of the attack. The story made national headlines all over the globe, appearing on ABC World News, the Washington Post, and other news outlets.

Lauletta’s father voiced every parents burning question: How can this be prevented from happening again?

“Cops on bicycles are not going to stop these thugs,” he says. “You need cars, firepower. That will scare them to death.”

Since the attack occurred, Temple University had doubled their security campus wide. Students are advised to take extra precautions considering the attack occurred right before Halloween.

Investigation is still ongoing to catch all the suspects.

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