Connecticut state Rep. Maryam Khan speaks out about alleged assault at Eid prayer service

Connecticut state Rep. Maryam Khan broke down in tears as she made her first public comments on Thursday about an incident where she was allegedly assaulted by a man while attending a gathering for Eid al-Adha prayers last month with her family in Hartford, Connecticut.

Khan alleged that the man followed her while she was with her children and a friend. She said that he indicated that he wanted to have sexual relations with someone in the group and later grabbed her face, asking her for a kiss. She said that she left trying to evade him, but he grabbed her and put her in a chokehold.

"He started to pursue me, grabbed my face ... and said, 'give me a kiss.,'" she said. "I pulled away, I tried deescalating ... I tried to distract him saying somebody's calling you up, go back outside."

Khan said that she went outside, hoping to keep him away from her children, but he followed them.

"He tried to grab my face and I dodged him and this time he got angry and he slapped me across my face on my right cheek," she said.

She said that her friend was "screaming on top of her lungs, yelling for help," but witnesses in the area "did not intervene."

"At that point he followed me, he held me back in a chokehold," she said, adding that she thought she "was going to die."

"He slammed my body into the ground, threw me .. and I ran for my life," she said.

Khan said that she ran downstairs, where she found security who kept them in a safe space.

The incident was reported at the XL Center in Hartford on the morning of June 28. Police said in a news release that officers responded to the area of 225 Trumbull Street after an assault against a female, who sustained minor injuries.

When they arrived on the scene, the responding officers found the suspect already detained by civilian bystanders and he was arrested.

"During the officer's investigation, it was determined that the suspect approached a female, later determined to be a public official, and began to make unwanted advances," police said. "The suspect also attempted to prevent her from leaving and assaulted the female."

Andrey Desmond, 30, of New Britain, Connecticut, was arrested on June 28 in connection with the incident and charged with four misdemeanors -- unlawful restraint in the second degree, assault in the second degree, breach of peace in the second degree and interfering with police.

Desmond was ordered held in lieu of $250,000 bond and his next court appearance is scheduled for July 17. Court records show that he has not yet entered a plea.

Michael Wagner, a public defender representing Desmond, said Desmond has "significant mental health issues" at the hearing, and the judge recommended he receive mental health treatment while in jail, according to CT Insider.

Police did not name Khan in the news release, as they don't identify crime victims, but the lawmaker was identified the day of the incident by the Connecticut branch of the Council of Islamic Relations (CAIR), a Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization.

Khan said that she asked for medics to be called to the scene.

"I was diagnosed with a concussion; I have no feeling in my right shoulder and my right arm," she said.

Khan criticized the police report, claiming that it did not share the full story, and said that she felt unsafe because while she was being attacked there was no security.

"[At] one of the largest Muslim events we screamed inside and outside and nobody came to our aid -- no security, no police, nobody," she said.

Khan called on the U.S. Department of Justice to launch a probe into how the Hartford Police Department responds to violent crimes against women.

"[If] this is the best we can do, as a state representative that represents the city of Hartford, I cannot be OK with that," she said.

"So many systems failed that day and I know that our systems are not perfect. This is why I ran for office, but they cannot be this broken," she added.

ABC News has reached out to the Hartford Police Department for comment.

Khan issued her first public statement about the incident on Wednesday, saying in a press release shared by Connecticut Democrats that she "experienced an attempted sexual assault and violent physical assault" the morning of June 28.

"I have sustained multiple physical injuries and it has taken an emotional toll on me and my family and children -- who witnessed the attack and were in harm's way," Khan said, later adding, "I am on a long journey of physical and emotional healing and I ask for your grace during this time."

Khan said she was "immensely grateful" for the men who helped apprehend the suspect but remains concerned about "the lack of security at one of the largest Muslim gatherings on the day of Eid in Hartford."

Khan was with her sister, a friend and her three children when they were reportedly approached by a man at the XL Center who "made vulgar and obscene remarks," according to CAIR.

Khan told CAIR that the alleged assailant "grabbed and hit her and threw her to the ground."

"We urge local, state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate a possible bias motive for this attack and to ensure the safety of the Connecticut Muslim community during the ongoing Eid al-Adha celebrations," said CAIR-Connecticut Chair Farhan Memon. "All too often we have seen American Muslims, or those perceived to be Muslim, targeted by hate because of their attire, race or ethnicity."

Eid al-Adha is a Muslim holiday that celebrates the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.

Khan represents the 5th District, which includes Hartford and Windsor. She became the first Muslim member of the Connecticut House when she won a 2022 special election, according to her biography on the website of the Connecticut House Democrats.

Connecticut lawmakers on the state and national level also condemned the alleged attack.

"I condemn this abhorrent attack on Rep. Khan & her family outside an Eid al-Adha prayer gathering. I urge vigorous investigation & prompt prosecution as appropriate to show that our state has zero tolerance for such repugnant violence," Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., tweeted.

ABC News' Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.