Was Megan Berg, Broadway costume designer attacked by Muslim Brunson because of her female gender? NYC career criminal now faces attempted murder as Arizona transplant who was ‘living her dream’ fights for her life.
A 25 year old Arizona woman who moved to NYC to ‘live her dream’ has been identified as the victim of a ‘deranged vagrant’ with a long criminal record who in a random attack slashed the ‘costume designer’ with a broken bottle, nearly killing her.
Megan Berg, 25, was allegedly slashed by Muslim Brunson, 46, on Monday afternoon in Manhattan’s Soho district, with the off broadway costume designer rushed to hospital after she was slashed in the neck.
The unprovoked attack which came moments after Brunson attempting to attack another female, left the Broadway costume designer in critical condition and needing surgery, Eyewitness News reported.
Broadway costume designer attacked because of her gender?
Brunson followign his arrest was charged with attempted murder in the second degree, second degree assault and criminal possession of a weapon.
Police said Brunson, an unhinged career criminal, with several prior arrests and a history of mental health treatment, walked up behind his unsuspecting female victim with a broken bottle and slashed her neck — sending the woman to the intensive care unit at Bellevue Hospital.
It remained unclear what prompted the attack, and whether Berg was targeted as a consequence of being a female.
Of note, Brunson is also said to have assaulted another young woman moments before attacking Berg the dailymail reported.
A NYPD spokesperson said he hit a 29-year-old woman in the back with a glass bottle at the intersection. She was unhurt and ran away, but the bottle shattered. That’s when Brunson targeted his alleged next victim, Megan Berg.
🚨 Horrific attack in SoHo: 25-yr-old costume designer Megan Berg, living her dream in off-Broadway theater, was slashed in the neck with a broken bottle. She’s in critical condition at Bellevue. Suspect Muslim Brunson, 46, charged with attempted murder—has a prior assault… pic.twitter.com/SshfN1yxgg
— PiolyUpdates (@PiolyUpdate) April 8, 2025
‘Moving to New York City was her dream’
Witnesses said they heard Berg scream amid the attack, with several people rushing over to apply pressure to her wound until EMS arrived.
‘Moving to New York City was her dream. She’s been doing costume design since she was in middle school,’ the victim’s father, George Berg told the nypost.
‘It’s just crazy. She’s still hanging on. She’s bubbly and loves what she’s doing. She’s full of life.
‘We’re hanging on,’ the distraught parent added.
Brunson’s rap sheet includes a 2022 attack on a civilian NYPD worker, who was so badly battered that she suffered a broken eye socket and cheekbone. He also had robbed and assaulted a 13-year-old boy in Brooklyn three years earlier.
The rise of talented costume designer
George Berg said Monday’s attack on his daughter has devastated his family.
‘My wife flew to New York this morning,’ he said. ‘I haven’t heard anything other than [Megan is] still in ICU.’
Megan has worked on musicals since 2017 back home in Arizona and was most recently an assistant costume designer on off-Broadway productions of ‘Fallen Angels, The Irrepressible Magic of the Tropics’ and ‘Music City: A New Musical.’
She earned a bachelor’s degree in theatrical design from the University of Arizona in 2020 and a master’s in costume design from Purdue University last year, according to her resume.
She also has a passion for needlework and dyeing and has won several awards for her work.
Jade McLeon, a theater performer and former colleague, told the nypost that Berg was ‘a sweet girl’.
‘She’s really friendly, lovely. We talked about theater. She’s passionate about theater.’
