'Booby Trap Bras' Surge In Sales Following Murder Of 2 Female Joggers
PHILADELPHIA (CBS/AP) – They were originally meant to support and lift, but now they're being used to protect and serve – kind of.
Women all over are turning to "Booby Trap Bras" following the murder of two joggers, whose deaths officials say were seemingly unrelated.
Unlike average bras, this sports bra features a pocket sewn into the lining that can store either a knife or pepper spray.
Jennifer Cutrona, the bra's developer, told the New York Post "I keep getting orders from New Yorkers, pinging my phone. At first I was thinking, 'What's going on?' Then I read the story about her. And I got sick to my stomach."
The "her" that Cutrona is referring to is Karina Vetrano. Vetrano was found late Tuesday night in a recreation area adjacent to her home in the Howard Beach section of Queens. An autopsy showed she died from strangulation. Her clothes were in disarray, indicating a possible sexual assault.
In the same week, in Princeton, Massachusetts, Vanessa Marcotte, a 27-year-old New Yorker, disappeared after she went for a late-afternoon run near her mother's home. Her body was found that evening in the woods. Investigators were trying to determine whether she had been sexually assaulted.
No arrests have been made in either case.
The founder of the "Booby Trap Bra" says it was a frightening attack on her life that inspired her to create the weapon-concealing undergarment.
"I was nearly jumped when I was running on a trail. There was a guy lurking in bushes. He tried to grab my arm — but he misjudged and I got away," she told the Post. "Once the fear wore off, it was anger. So I sewed a knife sheet in my bra and then I wasn't scared to go back and run on the same trail."
The brassieres cost $54.99 and are meant to help women feel empowered while exercising alone. The slayings of two women over the past week reinforced the fears many had when working out outdoors.
They are also sold with a 3-inch knife and case, which snaps into the lining of the bra, for $12.99. It can also be bought with Mace pepper spray for $16.99.
Cutrona adds that she is also partnering with Mace pepper spray to launch a sports bra with a built-in button to call 911. It will likely hit the shelves in December, she said.
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