A Chicago man is back at work in Bucktown just days after he was the victim of a violent robbery during his first day on the job.
Karl Michalak is back at work at Red Eye Eyewear in Bucktown for just his second day on the job, after his first day ended with a hospital visit after he was sucker punched on his lunch break.
“I went to 7/11," he detailed. "I bought a drink and two slices of pizza and I walked down the alley instead of the main side streets. These two guys who were walking in the direction I just walked from turned around and attacked me. I just wasn’t sure what was happening.”
Once he realized he was under attack, he yelled for help.
“Oh I was shouting. I was cussing. I said a lot of cuss words. I was more worried about being disfigured I think,” Michalak said.
The attackers never showed a weapon but demanded Karl’s bag and phone, leaving him with only his wallet. Michalak was left with swelling, a bruised lip, cuts and scrapes to his face and hands. The incident marked the second time Michalak was the victim of a robbery this year.
“It happened to me in March,” he explained. “And it was one-on-three that time!”
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Today, Karl is just thankful to be back at work selling eyewear. Despite the recent attack, he hasn’t changed how he moves around the city.
“I don’t really see any benefit in developing an irrational paranoia or being overly cautious, because that just makes you more of a target and it also doesn’t do you any good.”
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A nearby church started a GoFund Me to raise money and show support for Karl ever since Monday’s attack. Wednesday, on his second day of work, they presented him with a sizeable donation. The money will go towards his medical bills.
