Influencer Halley Kate Reveals How Getting Assaulted by a Stranger Impacted Her View of New York City

Staff AuthorTue, April 28, 2026 at 4:26 PM UTC

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Halley Kate at the 2025 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show on Oct. 15, 2025 in New York City.Credit: Jamie McCarthy/Getty -

During her appearance on Kendall Vertes' Not So Little podcast, Halley Kate looked back on how her relationship with New York City changed after a stranger punched her on the street in 2024

The influencer, 25, said she wasn't deterred from living in the city or walking around, though she admitted she's become more "aware" while out and about

The man who punched her, Skiboky Stora, was sentenced to three to nine years in state prison on April 14, about two months after he was convicted of assaulting Kate

Halley Kate is reflecting on her relationship with New York City two years after she was punched in the face by a stranger on the street.

The influencer, 25, appeared on a recent episode of Kendall Vertes' Not So Little podcast on April 23, just over one week after the man who assaulted her was sentenced to three to nine years in state prison. In February, he was convicted of assaulting Kate after she appeared in the New York Supreme Criminal Court to testify about the incident, which took place in March 2024.

During their discussion, Vertes referenced the assault and asked how it changed Kate's feelings about the city, though the content creator denied that there was much negative impact at all. In fact, she said she went back outside about three hours after it took place.

Halley Kate outside of New York Supreme Criminal Court on Feb. 3, 2026.Credit: Halley Kate/Instagram

"Maybe it's 'cause I've lived here so long, but it really didn't affect me that much," she explained. "I don't want to set one freak incident as the status quo that this is always going to happen when I leave my apartment or something like that. It's just like that was such a freak thing ... Nothing even kind of similar has happened to me ever before."

Kate went on to address some misconceptions that New York is "so scary" and maintained that she personally feels "safer in New York than I do if I go to a random small town somewhere."

"Don't get me wrong, I'm sure there's things that happen every single day, and you should obviously be vigilant no matter what city you're in. If you're on the subway, always like be checking your surroundings and just be mindful," she noted.

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She also admitted that the assault made her "a little more aware" when walking through the streets. Kate said that in the past, she would stroll around while "locked in" on her phone, but she now favors the treadmill for such multitasking. "So I'm not in anybody's like space, anything like that," she added.

Prosecutors said that after elbowing the teenager, Stora allegedly said, "You people think you can do whatever the f--- you want."

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Additionally, on Nov. 18, 2023, a Jewish couple claimed they saw Stora "tearing down posters of kidnapped Israeli hostages," per the D.A.'s release. After they took a photo of him, Stora noticed and allegedly began following the couple, shouting comments like, "Die, Jews, die."

The press release from the D.A. noted that "full and final Orders of Protection were issued" for each of Stora's victims.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”