Soho Karen video shows her tackling black teen boy Keyon Harrold Jr. over false accusations that he stole her missing iPhone as the woman goes into hiding.
Where is she? New footage released by the NYPD shows the moment an unhinged woman tackling the teenage son of a prominent Black musician after wrongly accusing the boy of stealing her iPhone at a SoHo hotel last weekend.
The video, released Wednesday night by NYPD Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison, shows the woman, since dubbed ‘Soho Karen’ by social media rushing 14-year-old Keyon Harrold Jr. in the Arlo Hotel on Saturday.
Keyon’s outraged father, Grammy-winning trumpet player Keyon Harrold, posted footage of the encounter to his Instagram account.
Police have yet to locate the woman, who Harrison has said could face assault and attempted robbery charges.
“On Saturday, December 26, the woman in this video falsely accused an innocent 14-year-old teenager of stealing her cellphone. She then proceeded to physically attack him and fled the location before police officers arrived on scene,” Harrison wrote on Twitter Wednesday night. ‘The @NYPDnews is requesting the public’s assistance locating the suspect in this video.’
Soho Karen identified as Miya Ponsetto Simi Valley California woman
On Saturday, December 26, the woman in this video falsely accused an innocent 14-year-old teenager of stealing her cellphone. She then proceeded to physically attack him and fled the location before police officers arrived on scene. pic.twitter.com/qtZZWetBWH
— Chief Rodney Harrison (@NYPDDetectives) December 31, 2020
In the elder Harrold’s Instagram video post of the encounter, the woman is shown demanding the teen hand back the ‘stolen’ cell phone multiple times.
She then is seen lunging at the father and son, the video shows. An Uber driver dropped off her missing phone moments later, police said.
Debate continues to swirl regarding the actual identity of the woman in the video clip. Earlier in the week social media users claimed the woman in the video was Staten Island nurse, Cassandra Medina. The woman who posted images of herself at the Arlo hotel days earlier has since remained adamant that she is not the woman in the video despite a very close physical resemblance.
#SoHoKaren identified
Her name is Miya Ponsetto from Simi Valley. Someone from Simi Valley identified her in the comments in one of @keyonharrold posts. She interviewed with cnn & they only released her age which is 22 and it adds up to her info pic.twitter.com/o7uzlcn2eN
— audrey (@tattoo_audist) December 31, 2020
‘I’ve been tagged all morning in this video and this is not me,’
According to Daily Mail, Cassandra also posted on Instagram addressing the accusations, reiterating that she was not the woman in the video, though she hopes Kenyon finds justice for the situation soon.
‘I’ve been tagged all morning in this video and this is not me,’ she wrote earlier this week. ‘It’s not OK to be falsely accused on social media, and I wouldn’t want that happening to anyone. @KenyonHarrold I hope you find [truly] who this person is because what she did is disgusting and this hotel should be held accountable.’
Daily Mail also reported the NYPD has identified the woman in the video, though they believe she is not a New York resident. No other information has been made public at this time.
The NYPD’s video release follows Soho Karen agreeing to a phone interview with CNN in which the woman insisted that she was in fact the one who was assaulted. No proof of such assault has been presented as the woman could now face assault charges.
Police are asking anyone with information about the woman who seemingly has now gone into hiding to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS.
