Sestu, a woman attacked from behind: "He hit me in the face; he was wearing a Halloween mask."

A few seconds of fear. This is how the attack unfolded late Tuesday evening between Via Santi and Via Emanuela Loi in Sestu . The victim, still in shock yesterday, is Donatella Matta, 69, a local resident. The attacker, who was wearing a Halloween mask , is unknown.

"I was coming home after visiting my daughter," the woman says, "when someone came up behind me. He hit me behind the ear, and then in the face. I screamed, and he immediately ran away . So I ran home, where my husband was."

Few details the woman could recognize: long hair, a stocky build, an orange T-shirt, and a large, red-striped mask that completely hid her face. Fear remains, and it will take longer to fade than any scar. "When I heard, I ran to my mother; she was still scared," says her son, Joele Ferru. "We're no longer safe in our town."