NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — “Brazen” is how a Nashville woman is describing a man who attacked her near a busy street in broad daylight. 

Lindsey Mulligan said she was assaulted around 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 15, near West End and 17th Avenue.

“It’s very busy. I guess the most surprising thing was how brazen it was,” Mulligan explained.

Mulligan was walking with a colleague back to her office building on West End when a man began following from far behind. Surveillance footage shows that once they got to the parking lot of their office in the 1700 block of West End Avenue, the man sprinted toward them and attacked. 

“He immediately sucker punched me on the side of my face, knocked me down he didn’t knock me out cold but then kept trying to drag my purse away which I decided I wasn’t letting go and then with the purse he would lift my body off the ground and slam it back into the concrete multiple times,” she said. 

Mulligan said she went into “flight or fight,” trying to fight off her attacker while clinging to her purse as her friend ran for help.

“I tried to position my body so I could physically start kicking him away from me and then when the men in my office building heard my colleague they came out.”

The man took off empty-handed with witnesses saying he left in a red sedan getaway car without a tag that was waiting on Hayes Street, leaving Mulligan dazed, cut up and bruised.

“It happened so fast, there was almost no time to think and react. It was terrifying,” she said. 

It’s a traumatic event Mulligan said she is sharing with hopes of keeping other women more vigilant, while she takes additional steps to protect herself. 

“I want to kind of push forward and make this be an opportunity for change and for people to listen, relate to and take their personal safety into account. I bought a personal alarm, which is like a little key chain you can rip apart and it makes a very loud noise. I have my location shared with trusted friends and family. I bought a panic button that I keep on my bag. I’ve got mace,” she explained. 

Mulligan added that she is glad that someone more vulnerable wasn’t attacked, pointing out that there is a pediatric office in the building, saying none of the tenants were notified of the assault. News 2 reached out to the owner of the building but has not heard back.

Mulligan said the man had shoulder-length shaggy hair, facial hair and was in his 20s or younger. If you have any information regarding this case, contact Metro police at 615-862-8600.