Former Arizona Sen. Martha McSally said she was sexually assaulted while jogging along the Missouri River in Iowa on Wednesday.
McSally, who spoke openly about her experience of being raped while serving in the Air Force, detailed the terrifying incident in an Instagram post.
The 57-year-old Republican said she was by the river in Council Bluffs, along the Nebraska border, when a man suddenly jumped out and grabbed her.
“A man came up behind me and wrapped me in a bear hug, molested me and fondled me until I fought him off,” McSally said in the video.
He noted that he was in Iowa because he was scheduled to give a speech in Omaha about bravery.
“I was in a fight, flight or freeze situation, and I chose to fight,” he continued. “I ran after him, threw my water bottle at him and chased him into the brush, where he then hid while I called 911 and waited for the police to arrive. “I don’t think they found it and I’m fine.”
Marth McSally was attacked along the Missouri River Wednesday morning.AP
The assault occurred around 10:53 a.m. at Haffan River’s Edge Park on a service road near the I-480 underpass, according to Council Bluffs police.
When police arrived, they were unable to locate the suspect, who fled. He was described as a “chubby” man between 25 and 40 years old.
McSally said she “still has a lot to process” after the terrifying attack.
“I will do it eventually,” he said. “In this case, I felt like I got my power back. He tried to take power away from me, but I gave it to him and he was running away from me instead of the other way around.”
McSally said she was in the area to give a speech about bravery in Omaha, Nebraska.AP
McSally revealed that she had been raped by a superior officer while in the Air Force, where she served for more than two decades, at a 2019 Senate hearing on sexual assault in the military.
She said at the time that she felt compelled to share her experience and how she handled it after “years of silence.”
McSally was elected to the House of Representatives in 2014. After losing a Senate bid to Democrat Krysten Sinema in 2018, Gov. Doug Ducey appointed her to the Senate following the resignation of Sen. John Kyl.
She was later defeated in a 2020 special election by Democratic Senator Mark Kelly.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn