Nearly a third of women in the United States have experienced
domestic abuse at some point in their life. Not only is that statistic absolutely harrowing, it is also likely to be significantly less than the actual figure. The truth is, the number is probably much higher than reported, as plenty of victims are too afraid to come forward and talk about their experiences.
While victims of domestic violence are encouraged to talk to the authorities about the abuse, the idea of doing so can be frightening. However, one man who is hoping to change this is Anthony Mendoza: a
hairdresser from Connecticut, US.
Anthony was working a shift at the barbershop when a woman came in sporting an unusual hairstyle. Confused by the woman's patchy hair and bruises, Andy jokingly asked the woman whether she had been in a brawl with someone.
As the two began to chat, Andy was horrified to learn that the woman in his chair was nearly killed by her partner in a violent domestic violence attack. Taking to his Instagram account, the hairdresser uploaded several photos of the woman, saying:
"So today I received a visit from a beautiful soul who went through an awful experience. A coward tried to take her life and in the process cut and pulled her hair out!"
"As I cut her hair, we talked and I couldn't help but notice how nice she was, and how much she did NOT deserve what happened to her. No woman ever deserves this!"
"My mother was a victim of abuse, and I remember it vividly! SPEAK UP AND TELL SOMEONE!"
"She gave me permission to share her images, and wants to let everyone know, "she is happy to be alive.""
" Guys PLEASE if you or someone you know is suffering from domestic ABUSE do not hesitate to contact someone for help."
The woman's partner, Michael Truskauskas, has been arrested in connection with incident and is currently being held on a $100,000 bond. According to local reports, Truskauskas beat, strangled and held a knife to the woman during the attack.
Local police have said that he threw the victim around his apartment like "a rag-doll" and tried to break her fingers and wrists. According to the report, the woman was so badly beaten up that her own mother didn't recognise her.
It's been reported that authorities were only alerted to the situation after a person sleeping in the backseat of a car noticed the woman walking around battered and bruised. She was apparently reluctant to talk at first, but eventually, she opened up and they were able to locate her boyfriend of a year and a half.
Truskauskas has been charged with disorderly conduct, second-degree assault, violation of a protective order, second-degree threatening, second-degree strangulation, first-degree kidnapping, and multiple drugs charges.
Hopefully, the arrest and charges against Truskauskas will encourage more people to come forward and name their abusers. Credit to Andy Mendoza for using his platform to spread a message of hope and positivity for the victims and for giving the woman a snazzy haircut.
