MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Police are asking for the public’s help in identifying a subject after a fight left a victim hospitalized with a severe head injury and unable to speak.
The fight was caught on newly released surveillance video on Oct. 4, at around 9:30 p.m., in a cul-de-sac at the end of Lincoln Court in Miami Beach.
“The subject, he sucker punches our victim,” said Miami Beach Police Officer William Collado.
“The screams just caught my attention,” said an area resident who asked not to be identified or show her face on camera. “It was so quick that I told my husband right away to start recording it and call the police.”
The resident said she watched from her balcony as both men seen in the footage got out of the car and then began to argue.
Cellphone video shows the subject and the victim engaged in a verbal altercation for about a minute. The victim is then seen walking away, and it was then that the attacker swung and knocked the victim out.
“Our victim falls back on the sidewalk, and as a result of him falling back on the sidewalk, he receives some very severe head trauma,” said Collado.
“I went outside to see if that guy was OK, because he wouldn’t get up,” said the area resident. “I started talking to him, and he was not unconscious, but he was barely moving.”
Police said the 41-year-old victim has remained hospitalized since the incident and is unable to speak.
Investigators only know that the victim was carrying a Canadian ID and appeared to live in Montreal.
Police said the man who threw the punch is about 5 feet 9 inches to 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighs between 190 and 200 pounds and has dreadlocks.
The area resident who spoke to 7News said it looked like the two men knew each other, and she couldn’t tell what they were fighting about.
The woman added that nothing could have been worth this display of violence. “I just didn’t think it was going to be this serious for this guy,” she said.
The subject sped off in a dark Volkswagen.
“It appears, from the video, there was a passenger in the car, but our main focus right now is on the driver,” said Collado.
If you have any information on this assault, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
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