The disturbing assault of an elderly man that happened in Columbus, Ohio, recently was recorded by a surveillance camera.
“It was several punches with his fist. He fell down on the ground and he continued to assault him. It was pretty violent,” Columbus Police Zone Investigation Unit Sergeant Jeff Spencer told WBNS.
The incident took place on January 12 at a store called Sami’s located on Cassady Avenue.
Officers said the man made a purchase when the suspect accused him of stepping too close to a child at the scene.
“The suspect thought that the victim, the 70-year-old man elbowed the child in the face. Reviewing the video, that’s not what happened,” Spencer noted.
The incident unfolded in the parking lot.
“Once they got outside, it was completely unprovoked. Whatever he thought happened inside, was already over,” Spencer added.
The clip of the incident showed two people struggling when one of them fell down as the other appeared to hit the person on the ground:
The suspect, who was eventually identified by police as Herbert Franklin, 24, allegedly hit the 70-year-old almost a dozen times.
“I think like everybody else, you are outraged when you see it. A 70-year-old man getting assaulted by a young man, defenseless, basically. Anyone who sees it is outraged,” Spencer continued.
In an updated social media post on Wednesday, the Columbus Division of Police identified Franklin and said a warrant was issued for his arrest.
“Franklin has additional warrants out of unrelated incidents: Domestic Violence & Assault,” the post read:
*UPDATE 1/19/22: Thanks to your tips the suspect has been identified as 24-year-old Herbert C. Franklin. A warrant has…
Posted by Columbus Division of Police on Saturday, January 15, 2022
Authorities said he had been arrested multiple times in previous years.
“He is still wanted. He has warrants for domestic violence, assault, and now another assault, and also a parole violation. He is still wanted, we haven’t picked him up yet,” Spencer told WBNS.
The victim was evaluated at a hospital and is alright, according to the outlet.
Meanwhile, Columbus police said homicides numbered 200 and 201 for the city which were record highs, and some suburbs near Columbus were experiencing the rate of violent crime increase, ABC 6 reported December 28.
“It seems to me there is a sense of entitled lawlessness,” Whitehall Police Chief Mike Crispen, who is president of the Franklin County Chiefs Association, said.
“From the pandemic to the civil unrest, you’re sort of getting a sense of lawlessness was starting to happen around the community,” he added.
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