A New York City healthcare employee is under investigation after a viral video showed her fake crying and screaming for help as she attempted to take a Citi bike from a black teenager who had the bike reserved.
Sarah Jane Comrie, an employee of NYC Health + Hospitals / Bellevue in New York City, was filmed tussling with a black boy who appears to be in his teens over the bike in the video, which is being widely circulated on social media.
‘This is Not Your Bike’
The clip starts off with Comrie repeatedly screaming for help. “Please help me!” she yells before the teen points out to her, “this is not your bike.”
“Get off me!” exclaims Comrie, who continues to struggle with the teen over the bike, before attempting snatching the teen’s phone away.
“You’re hurting my fetus. You’re hurting my unborn child,” she is heard saying.
Comrie appears to break down in tears as the teenager’s friend continues to film her, accusing her of fake crying.
“This is my bike. It’s on my account!” the teen reiterates.
A bystander, who also appears to be a healthcare employee, tries to resolve the situation by asking Comrie to take the bike adjacent to the one she was fighting over, which she agrees to.
Watch the video below:
The teenager refused to let Comrie take the bike as the person who reserved the bike is liable for penalties if the bike is not returned within the stipulated time, including $1,200 loss or stolen bike fee.
Twitter Reactions
After the video went viral, popular TikToker @thatdaneshguy managed to identify Comrie as the woman in the video, prompting social media users to reach out to Bellevue Hospitals calling for her sacking.
“A lady tried to use her tears to make something bad happen, but it didn’t work so she pretended it never happened,” wrote one user.
“Dear @NYCHealthSystem: This is how Black man get killed by so-called well-meaning passersby or even NYPD. Your employee is a violent racist. As someone who has suffered physically and mentally at the hands of racist health professionals, I expect you to remedy this,” commented another.
Bellevue Hospitals Says Its ‘Reviewing the Incident’
The hospital issued the following statement in the wake of the backlash:
“We have recently become aware of an incident that occurred off campus over the weekend and appears to involve one of our employees. We are sorry this happened and we are reviewing the incident.”
“NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue is committed to providing the highest quality of care to all New Yorkers with dignity, cultural sensitivity and compassion.”
