What began as a routine assignment for a Turning Point USA reporter quickly spiraled into chaos for a journalist covering a protest outside Minneapolis over the weekend.
According to the New York Post, Savanah Hernandez said she arrived Saturday at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building to film activity tied to an anti-ICE demonstration. For nearly an hour, she said, there were no issues.
That changed abruptly.
“I was there for almost an hour, untouched, and then one of the left-wingers identified me and a mob started forming,” Hernandez recounted.
The situation escalated as demonstrators began confronting her directly. According to Hernandez, one woman got in her face, pushing her and shouting insults.
A second protester joined in, repeatedly blowing a whistle close to Hernandez’s ear.
“I very much realized then that they were not going to leave me alone, so I started walking out of the protest and, of course, they all followed me. And this girl is right in my ear, blowing this whistle,” she said.
Moments later, the encounter turned violent.
Video footage shows the whistle-blowing protester punching Hernandez in the face, knocking her backward into a fence. As she attempted to get up and leave, another confrontation broke out nearby, with someone shouting, “Don’t f**king hit my daughter!”
A voice behind the camera can be heard yelling, “It’s over! It’s over!” as people attempted to break up the altercation.
But the violence continued.
Footage shows Hernandez, now on a sidewalk, shouting, “Stop touching me!” before being shoved to the ground again — this time by a man who pushed her forcefully while yelling, “Don’t f**king touch my daughter!”
The initial female attacker then returned, tackling Hernandez to the ground as the reporter tried to escape.
Eventually, several individuals intervened and separated those involved.
Hernandez said a police officer later drove her away from the scene.
Authorities confirmed that three people were arrested in connection with the incident. The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office identified them as Paige Ostroushko, Lorenzo Amadeo Garcia, and Christopher Ostroushko.
The case has since been forwarded to the district attorney’s office.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it is aware of what happened but declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
Hernandez said she suffered neck pain, a sprained knee, and multiple bruises, along with emotional distress.
“I am going to do everything in my power to make sure that justice is served for this case – not only for myself, but for every single journalist who has endured this, because this has been the norm for far too long,” she said.
