Man accused of sucker punching stranger told police he was ‘having a bad day’

MIAMI (WSVN) - A 61-year-old Miami woman was running errands when she was sucker punched by a complete stranger in a random sidewalk attack that was caught on surveillance cameras.

Miami Police arrested 40-year-old Tavaris Greene shortly after he allegedly sucker punched a woman who was simply walking down the sidewalk Thursday afternoon in the Little Havana neighborhood after running errands.

The violent attack was caught on surveillance video.

Mónica Zapata, the owner of Calle Ocho Sports Bar, says she pulled up to her restaurant around noon Thursday to find several people huddled around the 61-year-old victim.

“She is bleeding profusely from literally the skin of her face, like by her nose, and her nose is dripping blood,” Zapata said.

Zapata called 911, and the woman was taken by ambulance to the hospital. She was reportedly in and out of consciousness during the ride.

When she later looked through her sports bar’s security system, Zapata saw the attack had been caught on video. A man can be seen in the footage swinging a fist at the victim, knocking her off her feet, before he runs away.

“It’s terrifying,” Zapata said. “He’s just walking, and he comes up to her and leans into her, hits her very hard one time, knocks her down. She hits the floor. Her head hits the concrete. And [he] just leaves her there.”

Greene, who is charged with felony battery, appeared before a judge Friday. According to his arrest report, he told detectives he was “having a bad day because he punched someone” and said he later smoked synthetic marijuana after returning home to take a nap.

In court, it was revealed the victim suffered a fractured nose and cuts to her left cheek and will need stitches.