The Clay County Sheriff’s Office reports that a hospital worker repeatedly hit a male patient in the face, shoved him against a wall, and caused him to fall to the ground.
CLAY COUNTY, Fla. — An employee at HCA Orange Park Hospital was taken into custody on Tuesday, accused of assaulting a 73-year-old patient, according to an announcement from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office made on Wednesday.
Deputies from the sheriff’s office responded to the hospital on Friday, November 14th, following a report of the alleged assault.
“Investigations uncovered that the 73-year-old patient was deliberately struck in the face multiple times, pushed into a wall, and knocked down by hospital staff member Anthony Diaz, aged 52,” the CCSO stated in their release.
The incident was reportedly witnessed by another hospital employee who was present in the room at that time.
On Tuesday, detectives from the CCSO secured an arrest warrant for Diaz and subsequently arrested him at his residence.
Diaz has been charged with aggravated battery of an elderly person, and is being held on a $150,003 bond, according to CCSO.
HCA Orange Park told First Coast News the following:
“We do not tolerate behavior that jeopardizes the safety and well-being of our patients or colleagues, and the staff member involved in this incident is no longer employed by HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital.”
