A school janitor who was beaten and robbed of her AirPods by three men as she bicycled through Central Park feared she'd die and never see her parents again as she frantically fought off her attackers with a Stanley tumbler, she told the Daily News Tuesday as she spoke out about the horrific mugging.

Her recounting of the brutal robbery came as police released images of her masked attackers in the hope someone recognizes them.

Katherine Marroquin, 32, was cycling home from work when a man blindsided her with a punch to the head as she bent to pick up her dropped AirPods near East Drive and 90th St. around 9:45 p.m. Sunday, according to police. Her attacker was quickly joined by two more men who continued to beat her up, punching her in the head, neck, and body while demanding she hand over her belongings, Marroquin said.

 I fought back, and then two other guys appeared and started hitting me,  Marroquin said, recalling the terrifying ordeal.  They took my book bag and started taking everything out and throwing it. As soon as I saw my Stanley (tumbler) I grabbed it and I hit one of them with it. They went running. 

The crooks made off with her AirPods, headphones, keys, and about $80 from her backpack. They also snatched her phone and threw it in a nearby body of water when she said she was recording them.

Marroquin said she's just happy to be alive.

 When those men were hitting me, I wasn't thinking about material things. The first thing in my head was just to see my mom and dad and my family,  she said.  Like, I didn't care about money or my phone. I didn't care about nothing. I just care about me. 

After the assault, Marroquin was left stunned with blood running down her face when a Good Samaritan happened upon her and called the police.

Cops on Tuesday released surveillance footage of the suspects, who were dressed in dark-colored jackets and had their faces covered by surgical masks or scarves.

At the time of the attack, Marroquin didn't feel any pain because of the adrenaline and declined medical attention at the scene. Two days later, she was feeling the results of the beat
#nydailynews   #crimewatchnewyork