A woman has made a desperate plea after she was punched in the face during a terrifying road accident, forcing her to undergo facial surgery.
Tori Lee, 31, was driving through Campbelltown in southwest Sydney between 5:45pm and 5:55pm last Saturday when she stopped at the intersection of Blaxland Road and Campbelltown Road.
The woman told police that when she honked a black Mitsubishi sedan in front of her, the driver got out of his car and punched her in the face.
The man then tried to drag her out of the vehicle before she could drive away, and sought medical attention at Campbelltown Hospital.
Ms Lee has since been transferred to Liverpool Hospital where she underwent surgery for multiple facial fractures.
In a video posted online, Ms. Lee recalled how the man in the Mitsubishi drove close behind her after she honked at him at an earlier intersection when he failed to take off at a green light.
Ms Lee said she had raised her hand to apologize to the driver but that he had not reacted properly and tried to ’cause an accident by running me off the road’.
She said the man got out of his car and yelled “stuff” at her as she sat terrified in her vehicle.
Ms Lee said she rolled down her window to talk to the angry man, and turned to lower the volume of her music before he allegedly punched her face.
“I just started bleeding profusely from my nose,” she said.
Tori Lee, 31, suffered facial injuries after she was reportedly punched in the face by a male driver in a road accident in southwest Sydney last Saturday
Ms Lee said she “blacked out for a moment” before looking around to see if she had been hit in the face with an object, but said she realized she had indeed been hit by the owner of the Mitsubishi.
She said she looked up at the man and he smiled as if he was “very proud of himself.”
Ms Lee said she then locked the car door and tried to reverse into the other lane, almost hitting the person behind her.
“I called whoever I could as fast as I could and got myself to Campbelltown Hospital,” she said.
“He was very tall, over six feet and over 250 pounds. I’m five feet tall, about 200 pounds and also a woman.’
CT scans revealed that Ms. Lee had multiple fractures to her face that required surgery.
Ms Lee said she had tried not to look at herself in the mirror because it made her “very upset”.
She said that while posting about the ordeal on social media, she hoped the public could help her get information about the incident.
She said she didn’t get the man’s details because her first priority was to get to the hospital.
Ms. Lee said she was unable to work and her sister had started a GoFundMe page to raise money for medical expenses.
Ms. Lee warned others not to respond if caught in the middle of a fit of rage.
“Just ignore it,” she said.
Ms Lee underwent surgery for multiple facial fractures following the incident
The incident took place at the intersection of Blaxland Road and Campbelltown Road in Campbelltown, southwest of Sydney
Officers associated with Campbelltown City Police Area Command have launched an investigation into the incident and have released a description of a man who may be of assistance to investigators.
The man is described as being of Pacific Islander/Maori appearance, about 6 feet 8 inches (182 cm) tall, of stocky build with hair in a bun and a tattoo on his left arm
He was wearing a white shirt and shorts at the time.
Police believe there may have been motorists who witnessed the incident, or may have a dash cam relevant to the investigation.
Detective Andrew Mackay told a media conference that there was “certainly no violence from (Lee) at all.”
“It’s very shocking, it’s disgusting behavior… we take all incidents of violence very seriously,” he said.
“Someone must have seen what happened, it was just before 6pm on a Saturday, it’s a busy intersection with lots of cars, I need the public’s help.