The purpose behind this image is now being questioned as witnesses come forward. Photo / Twitter
Conflicting reports have emerged after a supporter of US President Donald Trump stepped in when a crowd turned on a black woman in the US this week.
In the shocking images – captured by Raquel Natalicchio – red-headed Roy Ball is seen bear hugging Berlinda Nibo, who was viciously attacked by Trump supporters in LA.
Initially, she insisted the man grabbing her was her "hero" and the LAPD tweeted he was "a good Samaritan".
However, in the days that have followed, different and disturbing new accounts have emerged, casting doubt on Ball's intentions when he grabbed Nibo.
Nibo was walking home in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday when she encountered members of a local "Stop the Steal" demonstration and began to live-stream the event, the Washington Post reported.
"They're yelling at me because of my colour, calling me the n-word, calling me the b-word, saying, 'All lives matter. Black lives doesn't matter,'" Nibo, 25, told KCAL.
Shocking footage of the incident shows dozens of demonstrators swarming Nibo. As she is pushed, her wig is ripped off her and she is doused with pepper spray.
"I'm telling them, 'No, I'm not a Trump supporter. I don't care. Please just leave me alone. I'm just trying to get home,'" she recounted to KTTV.
When Nibo first spoke to media outlets she crediting the man for shielding her and leading her to safety.
"That guy, I call him my hero. That guy picked me up, was whispering in my ear, telling me, "Keep going. You're OK. I got you, I have your phone. You're OK, I'm going to get you out of here. These people are trying to kill you",' she told NBC 4 on Thursday.
But after her initial statement, several other witness accounts claimed she was actually maced in the eyes while being restrained by Ball, saying he is no hero.
"Roy Ball was not a bystander. He was involved," one user tweeted.
Footage of two unidentified witnesses jumping out of the crowd to escort Nibo to the police line has been circulated since initial reports of the incident.
Nibo later has now said she was unable to see who helped her by leading her out of the crowd and was trying to retract her statement of the man"saving her", according to one Instagram account.
Nibo has also since told Buzzfeed News she didn't fight back because in that moment she did need help and trusted him.
However, when the man was carrying her with her hands at her sides, someone pepper-sprayed her in the face for at least the third time.
"It did not help me," Nibo told the news outlet. "It would've helped me more if he had made way for me to move out of there completely."
Witness Di Barbadillo told LAIST it was she and two others who actually brought Nibo to safety.
"If he intended to help her, I don't think he was able to follow through with that," said Barbadillo. "We grabbed her out of there and walked her across the street."
Issuing their own statement, the LAPD said the man "appears to have been a good Samaritan" who "carried her away from the hostile crowd and let her go".
"The LAPD is continuing to conduct a thorough investigation, and we encourage any witnesses or those with information on the suspect(s) to contact Central Area Detectives," police said in a statement.
No one has yet been arrested in connection with the attack on Nibo, according to NBC Los Angeles.
As for Ball, it's understood when the images first surfaced, he was identified by social media users and has since been fired over his involvement in the rally after Twitter users identified him as an employee at a car dealership.
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