Man Charged in Beating of Elderly Hospital Roommate

Prosecutors say Laguna Niguel man beat the 91-year-old until he was restrained by hospital staff

A Laguna Niguel man was charged with attempted murder Friday for allegedly beating a 91-year-old man in a hospital room.

Ibrahim Yousef Battat, 36, and the unnamed victim were patients and roommates at Fountain Valley Regional Medical Center in Fountain Valley when prosecutors say Battat covered the elderly man’s nose and mouth with his hands at 3:40 a.m. Wednesday.

They say he then repeatedly punched the victim and left him with a broken finger, “major” cuts to the head and hands and a swollen eye.

Nurses and a patient in the next room intervened and restrained Battat, according to a statement from the Orange County District Attorney’s office.

Battat was charged with one count of attempted murder and one count of elder abuse. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison.

He is currently being held in lieu of $1 million bail. He is due in court for arraignment June 27.

Prosecutors did not speculate on a possible motive for the attack in the statement.

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