Marie Laguerre, 22, was returning to her home in the north-eastern 19th district of Paris last week when a man catcalled her on the street.

“It wasn’t the first time that day, that week or that month,” she told a French television show on Monday. “It had been building up.” The man in question made sexual comments, accompanied by “noises with sexual connotations” as Laguerre walked past.

She decided enough was enough, and told him to shut up before turning the corner and walking past a bustling terrace outside a café. But the man followed her, rounding the café and throwing an ashtray at her that only narrowly missed Laguerre. Then, as they squared off in front of the café, he slapped her in the face.

The whole incident was captured on CCTV video, which was provided to Laguerre by the restaurant owner to help her with her police report. (At first, Laguerre went home after the incident, only returning to the restaurant to obtain witness statements and the video.) When Laguerre posted the video on her Facebook this week it went viral. Warning: This content could be distressing to some viewers.

Video of French woman being slapped by street harasser goes viral