A 34-year-old woman will spend 12 years behind bars for carrying out a random acid attack inside a Prospect Lefferts Garden subway station in 2022, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced Tuesday.
Rodlin Gravesande, formerly of Brownsville, was handed down the sentence by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Joanne Quinones on June 18 after she was convicted of first- and second-degree assault in May.
According to the evidence, at around 12:45 a.m. on Dec. 2, 2022, the 21-year-old victim, Juanita Jimenez, was riding a southbound 2 train to work at Kings County Hospital when Gravesande began yelling and threatening fellow straphangers. She reportedly did this for several minutes before turning her attention to the victim.
When the train arrived at Winthrop Street Station, in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Jimenez exited the train but was followed by Gravesend.
After a brief exchange, Gravesande punched Jimenez in the head before opening a vial of sulfuric acid and throwing it in her face.
The acid burned a hole through the 21-year-old’s clothing and caused second- and third-degree burns to the left side of her face.
Following the attack, she ran to Kings County Hospital and was later transferred to the burn unit at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx. She has since undergone multiple reconstructive surgeries on her nose and lip as well as multiple skin grafts.
Gravesande fled the scene but was later apprehended in Atlanta, Georgia, by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office before she was extradited to Brooklyn in January 2023.
“Today’s sentence holds this defendant accountable for a frightening and random attack on an innocent woman. Brooklyn residents deserve to feel safe when taking the subway and those who jeopardize their safety will be held accountable,” Gonzalez said in a statement. “My heart goes out to the young victim of this attack as she continues to heal from her injuries.”
Following the attack, Jimenez set up an online fundraiser to help pay for her medical bills and to purchase a car “so that I no longer have to take the MTA where I do not feel safe.”
The 21-year-old went on to share her recovery journey on TikTok, and most recently underwent free reconstructive surgery after reaching out to a California-based surgeon, Dr. Carl Truesdale.
In a June 6 Instagram post, Jimenez thanked Dr. Truesdale for getting her confidence back.
“People are literally squinting to see the scaring,” she said. “Thank you so much for giving me my confidence back to graduate and walk outside.”
