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Exclusive: Video Sheds Light On Brooklyn Pole 'Injury'

FORT GREENE, N.Y. (CBS 2) -- A Brooklyn woman allegedly told a tall tale to police in an attempt to make a quick buck.

Sherin Brown claims she was injured by a falling light pole, but surveillance video exclusive to CBS 2 HD seems to tell another story.

In the video footage, it appears that as a tractor trailer clips the pole, causing it to fall to the ground – Brown jumps out of the way just in time. The surveillance video also shows Brown returning to the scene and crawling under the pole.

One witness spoke to CBS 2's Kathryn Brown but did not want her name to be revealed.

"She was just laying on the ground saying 'Oh my leg!'" said the witness, who was standing near Brown and nearly got hit herself. But, as she puts it,  "Nobody got hit."

She said that she and other witnesses knew instantly that Brown faked the injury.

"They were laughing and saying, 'American money! American money!' – everybody knew she did it for the money," she said.

After the incident, Brown was taken to a nearby hospital for her alleged injuries, but once police saw the video from the surveillance camera, they arrested her and charged her with falsely reporting an injury.

Brown was released on her own recognizance, but wasn't at her King's Plaza home Monday to answer any questions about what happened – or why she told the story she did.

Those who live nearby have their own ideas.

"She wanted to sue somebody I guess," said Daniel Tipia, a Forte Greene resident. "It's just crazy."

"I think she was probably trying to cash in," said Farida Ward, another resident.

But thanks to the surveillance video – that doesn't seem likely.

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