Man speaks out after random Center City assault leaves him with broken jaw

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A Glen Mills man is recovering after what he describes as an unprovoked assault in Center City Philadelphia that left him hospitalized with a broken jaw.

Tommy Finley, 22, said he and his girlfriend, Bella Carlucci, were walking back to their hotel after a night out celebrating Halloween when a stranger attacked him without warning.

"We were out at the bars with friends all night. It was an amazing time, packed; the streets were packed, it's Halloween night. I mean, everyone's out, it's fun," Finley said. "We finished the night probably 12:30 a.m.. We start walking [to the hotel] at the time, which is a 10-minute walk."

Police said the assault happened after 1 a.m. on Nov. 1 on the 600 block of Chestnut Street. Surveillance video shows the suspect, wearing a red jacket, jeans and a red and white hat, stumbling down the sidewalk moments before the attack.

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Finley said he never saw it coming.

"He was walking along the side of the road with us, completely unbothered. At some point there he turned around and he started walking by us. I didn't think anything of it, and before I know it, he took a step towards me and sucker punched me without saying a word, with nothing, he just hit me," Finley said.

"It was like boom, I didn't see the guy even come at me," he added. "He didn't talk, he hit me. I look at him and he's squared up as I'm holding my face spitting blood, my tooth has moved about six inches back."

Carlucci said she immediately called for help.

"It was like a blink of an eye, and I look over at him and he's gushing blood everywhere and he's just saying, 'Call 911, call 911.' And this guy is ready to keep fighting," she said.

Finley said the suspect walked away as he and Carlucci called police.

Finley spent two and a half days in the hospital. Doctors told him both sides of his jaw were fractured.

"He put a big crack, fracture in my jaw, and it actually hit so hard that it cracked the other side of my jaw, so both sides were broken," Finley said. "My tooth was completely moved out of place. So now I'll have plates in my face forever, permanently. I have eight screws in my gums."

He said he will not be able to eat solid foods for six weeks and is still experiencing numbness.

"I'm pretty much numb from my lip down this whole like area here. I just, I feel nothing," Finley said.

Both Finley and Carlucci said they are grateful the situation didn't turn deadly.

"Who knows what he could've done. We're both so lucky that it wasn't a gun, a knife," Carlucci said.

Now, they hope sharing their story will help police find the suspect and prevent another attack.

"I just worry for people, that guy is walking on the street," Finley said. "He didn't want my money, he didn't want you, he just wanted to hurt me. He wanted to fight. You should be able to walk along the streets of Philly without having to worry. It's not good."

Police are asking anyone with information to contact them at 215-686-TIPS.