An Edmonton couple is speaking out about the issue of downtown crime after they say they were violently attacked when they left a Nickelback concert at Rogers Place on Saturday night.
Rory Aasland and Elizabeth Neustaeter were staying at the JW Marriott Hotel, which is less than a two-minute walk from Rogers Place. After the concert, at around 11:45 p.m., they were walking back to their hotel.
They told Global News that once they were near the entrance, a woman who was walking in front of them began to attack them.
“(The woman) grabbed my head from the back,” Neustaeter said. “I was going down fast. I remember thinking in a flash, like, ‘Wow, I think I’m going to get really, really hurt here.
“Before I knew it, my cheek was touching the sidewalk.”
Neustaeter said that the woman who attacked her was ready to smash her head into the sidewalk when someone who she assumes was her boyfriend, Aasland, quickly grabbed her off the ground.
Neustaeter said the woman then grabbed Aasland from behind and placed him in a chokehold. He tried to fight her off but in the process fell to the ground and was seriously injured.
“I went down to help her before something else happened to her, to see what the damage was,” Aasland said. “And that’s when I got attacked from behind and choked out.
“And just the momentum of whomever jumped on top of me took me down awkwardly.”
Neustaeter said that she only had some bruises and a sore leg, but her boyfriend was in hospital for four days and had to get surgery for his ankle that was broken in two places.
The couple said the woman who attacked them then attacked a security guard at their hotel and another person down the street.
Police said officers responded to the assault outside Rogers Place that night and investigators believe the couple was actually attacked by two people: a man and a woman.
Police said they believe the attack began with a man punching Aasland, causing him to fall. They believe Neustaeter was then attacked by the woman. Both suspects then left the scene.
According to police, the female suspect was later arrested and charged but they did not disclose her name or what she was charged with. They did not confirm if she is still in custody.
Police said they now believe they know who the male suspect is and continue to search for him.
Aasland said he will have to be off work for at least the next six weeks.
“I know my community members and friends, they don’t deserve that — nobody does,” Neustaeter said. “You should be able to go to work and feel safe in your city.”
Neustater posted about the attack on social media this week.
“This is not the Edmonton I remember,” she wrote in a Facebook post. “I have loved this city for over 25 years. This is my home and I have defended our city for years, but I no longer will.”
The couple said they will be thinking twice before they head downtown again and are now nervous about bringing their children there.
“Maybe my mind will change in the future as we get past this, but right now, I can’t picture myself going back downtown,” Neustaeter said.
Aasland said he will be more cautious.
“I guess I’m going to be more try to be more aware of my surroundings,” he said. “But it’s everywhere.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s downtown or if it’s northwest. It’s everywhere. It doesn’t matter. And it’s just getting worse.”
A friend of the couple has started an online fundraiser to raise money for Aasland and Neustater, saying the couple needs help over the next couple of months because the injury has left Aasland unable to work while he recovers.
–With files from Morgan Black, Global News