Dramatic video shows woman fighting off attacker in gym
Nashali Alma was working out alone at her apartment complex’s gym on 22 January when suspect Xavier Thomas-Jones, 25, approached her
The dramatic moment a Florida woman fought off a man trying to attack her while she worked out at a gym has been captured on surveillance video.
Nashali Alma, 24, was working out alone at the Tampa apartment complex’s gym on 22 January when suspect Xavier Thomas-Jones, 25, allegedly approached the door and asked to be let inside. She recounted the terrifying encounter in a video made available to the public by the Hillsborough County Sherriff Office.
“I buzzed him in and he came inside,” Ms Alma said. “My thought process was, ‘It’s just another dude coming to work out.’ So, I didn’t think of anything out of that.”
Ms Alma resumed her workout but several minutes after, the man approached her and tried to grab her. Surveillance footage at the gym shows Ms Alma unsuccessfully attempting to run away from the man and swinging her fists at him.
“As soon as he was approaching me, I said, ‘Bro, what the eff are you doing?” Ms Alma said. “‘Get away from me. Stop trying to touch me.’”
At one point, the man can be seen pinning Ms Alma to the ground and grabbing her arm while she tried to call police with her phone.
“After we were on the ground wrestling for a little bit I went ahead and pulled his beard hair. I started twisting, twisted, twisted. I could see from his face that it hurt really bad,” Ms Alma also told ABC affiliate WFTS.
She was eventually able to break free and ran to a nearby apartment, where she called 911.
Ms Alma, a bodybuilder, said she allowed the man inside because she had seen him several times in the apartment building.
In a statement released last week, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister commended Ms Alma’s courage, noting that she wanted to come forward with her story to inspire women who may find themselves in similar situations.
“My advice, never give up,” Ms Alma said. “As long as you don’t give up, if you show him that you are strong ... that you’re able to fight back and survive and get out of the situation, I believe it’s possible.”
Records obtained by WFTS show that Mr Thomas-Jones was allegedly involved in a similar incident just a day after Ms Alma’s attack.
An incident report states that he tried to break into a woman’s apartment after observing her on her balcony for several minutes. The woman’s fiancé chased him away.
Mr Thomas-Jones has since been arrested and charged with sexual battery, false imprisonment, and kidnapping.
He is being held in jail without bond.