A man who reportedly grabbed a Chicago news reporter during a live broadcast and yelled obscenities at the camera has been arrested by pol...
A man who reportedly grabbed a Chicago news reporter during a live broadcast and yelled obscenities at the camera has been arrested by police and now faces assault charges.
Eric Farina, 20, was charged with battery and disorderly conduct in relation to the incident that occurred on Saturday evening, while WGN reporter Gaynor Hall was recording a live segment on a recent windstorm in Shorewood, Illinois.
Footage of the exchange shows Hall delivering the lead-in for her prepared news package when a man, purported to be Farina, suddenly runs into frame, grabs the reporter around the shoulders and shouts ‘f*** her right in the p****’, down the camera lens.
Despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the man wasn’t wearing a facemask or any other personal protective equipment when he accosted Hall. The man then ran from the scene.
Police later described the man's comments as 'profane and disturbing'.
Footage of the exchange shows Hall delivering the lead-in for her prepared news package when a man, purported to be Farina, suddenly runs into frame, grabs the reporter around the shoulders and shouts ‘f*** her right in the p****’, looking down the camera lens
The station quickly cut away from the broadcast to a video package of Hall’s report, later offering an apology for the man’s bad language. WGN’s anchors also assured viewers that Hall was ‘fine’.
But in a Facebook post referencing the incident, Hall revealed she was left shaken up by the man’s actions.
‘It was not funny. You violated my personal space. You grabbed me,’ she wrote. ‘You scared me. Was it worth it?’
Farina was arrested at his home in Minooka early Sunday, police said. He allegedly confessed to the crime and was released on $2,500 recognizance bond.
The stunt, which police said was intended to be a prank, was made in reference to a worn-out viral gag that first emerged online in 2015, in which members of the public trolled live broadcasts by uttering the same profane statement as Farina did.
Farina was arrested at his home in Minooka early Sunday, police said. He allegedly confessed to the crime and was released on $2,500 recognizance bond.
The station quickly cut away from the broadcast to a video package of Hall’s report, later offering an apology for the man’s bad language. WGN’s anchors also assured viewers that Hall was ‘fine’
Celebrating Farina’s arrest on Facebook, Hall offered appreciation for her fans for their kind messages in the days since.
‘Thanks to your help, he was identified and arrested,’ Hall wrote. ‘Thank you all so much for your kind words and support. I am ok and I appreciate you more than you know.’
Hall’s post was quickly inundated with comments offering similar messages of support.
‘I’m embarrassed that this happened in our village,’ wrote local Erica Uribe. ‘Yesterday after we got hit with the storm I was so proud of how all the neighbors pulled together and we were all helping each other out with the clean-up but then this one ignorant person goes and does this repulsive “stunt” and gives us all a bad name.’
Similarly, Beth Paluzzi wrote: ‘I’m so sorry this happened to you in our town. We are better than that! We have the best community with wonderful, kind people that care for and respect each other.’
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