Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., walks down the House steps at the Capitol on Friday, May 13, 2022.
Bill Clark | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota was assaulted Thursday morning in the elevator of her apartment building in Washington, D.C., her office said.
The Democratic lawmaker was punched and grabbed by the neck and had to toss her hot coffee on the alleged attacker to defend herself, according to a police report of the incident.
Craig, 50, who has served in Congress since 2019, “defended herself from the attacker and suffered bruising, but is otherwise physically okay,” her chief of staff, Nick Coe, said in a statement.
“Rep. Craig called 9-1-1 and the assailant fled the scene of the assault,” which occurred around 7:15 a.m. ET, Coe’s statement said.
He added that there is currently “no evidence” that the incident against Craig, the first openly LGBTQ member of Congress from her state, was “politically motivated.”
“Rep. Craig is grateful to the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department for their quick response and asks for privacy at this time,” Coe said.
Craig was seen with a security detail during votes later Thursday, NBC News reported.
Craig told the police that the alleged attacker was first seen in the lobby of her building, “acting erratic as if he was under the influence on an unknown substance,” according to a public incident report provided to CNBC by the Metropolitan Police Department.
The lawmaker at some point said “good morning” to the suspect and then entered the elevator to go to her apartment, the report said.
Craig said the suspect then followed her into the elevator and “began to randomly do push ups,” then “with a closed fist punched her on the chin area of her face, and later grabbed her neck,” according to the report.
Craig “defended her self by tossing her hot coffee” at the suspect, who then escaped before officers arrived, the report said. Two officers searched a basement-level parking lot but came up empty, the report said.
The incident is not suspected to be a hate crime, according to the report.
Craig received a “minor injury to her chin” from the suspect, who is “believed to be homeless,” the U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement to NBC.
“At this time, there is no indication that the Congresswoman was targeted because of her position, however the case is still under investigation by both the MPD and the USCP,” the statement said.