Moseley Braun praises college students who came to her aid during mugging

Jet, May 14, 2007

Former U.S. senator and presidential candidate Carol Moseley Braun thanked two college students who came to her rescue when a mugger tried to steal her purse outside her home in Chicago.

Braun was standing at her front door when an assailant came out of the bushes and tried to take her purse, AP reported. When Braun resisted, the man pulled a knife and tried to cut the strap of her purse. During the struggle, she fell, fracturing her left wrist.

University of Chicago students Zachary Trayes-Gibson and friend, Rachel McFadden, came to her aid and scared the assailant off.

"They well could have saved my life," Braun said. "They are heroes to me." The assailant fled the scene without the purse, police said. No arrests were immediately made.