Rumors of Hoax Surround Acid Attack Victim

Police are aware of growing media speculation that a Washington state woman who says a stranger doused her face with acid may have staged the attack herself, but they say their investigation is still open.

"Certainly, we are aware [of the controversy]," Vancouver, Wash., police spokeswoman Kim Kapp told AOL News. "What I can say is we are following up on all tips and all leads, all information that comes in to the lead detective. ... The investigation is still very much in an information-gathering stage."

Bethany Storro, 28, said an unknown woman approached her outside a Starbucks on Aug. 30 and said, "Hey, pretty little girl, want to take a drink of this?" The woman then allegedly threw a cup of acid-like liquid in Storro's face, resulting in second-degree burns all over her face.

Doctors say a pair of sunglasses Storro bought less than an hour before the attack saved her vision. Since the attack, Storro has helped police put together a composite drawing of her alleged attacker, whom she describes as an African-American woman in her late 20s or early 30s, with her hair pulled back into a ponytail. -via-