The 20-year-old man accused of beating an elderly patient in a Detroit nursing home – captured in a shocking viral video – was inexplicably moved to the facility after testing positive for Covid-19.
The young man, who has not been named, was transferred from an Ann Arbor hospital to Detroit’s Westwood Nursing Center last week after contracting the coronavirus, his father told local media. He later appeared in disturbing footage repeatedly punching an elderly man in the face. While the suspect has since been arrested for the assault, it remains unclear how or why he ended up at the nursing home in the first place, given that seniors are among the most vulnerable to the lethal illness.
“He never should have been housed – quarantined – with the victim that he eventually assaulted. That should have never happened,” the man’s father said, adding: “Someone dropped the ball.”
He has [mental] issues and for them to put him in a facility like that, nothing good was going to happen.
Prior to the attack that was captured on video – apparently filmed by the assailant himself – the suspect already faced charges in nearby Washtenaw County, where he is accused of assaulting a staff member at another facility. While acknowledging his son’s severe behavioral and mental problems, the father said he “never would have consented” to sending him to a nursing home had he been informed of it. It is still unknown who made the decision to transfer him there.
Some mystery also surrounds the 75-year-old victim of the nursing home assault. Relatives told local press that they began to worry when they were unable to reach him by phone, explaining that, for reasons that are still unclear, he was taken from his Detroit apartment and brought to the Westwood center. The man is now recovering from his injuries at a nearby hospital.
The incident has sparked widespread outrage, even drawing the attention of US President Donald Trump. The backlash has only been intensified with the latest revelation, prompting a flood of criticism and questions from critics online.
Gosh, it gets worse. The Michigan beating suspect was moved to a nursing home because he was diagnosed with COVID-19, says his father. Suspect also had a pending assault case. The elderly male victim is an Army veteran. cc: @GovWhitmer https://t.co/73BWavqS7Z
It’s so heartbreaking to see the videos of the guy beating an elderly man at a nursing home in Detroit. Elder abuse has been going on way longer than covid. Where’s the vetting? Funded thru Medicare/Medicaid. Who’s NOT doing their job?
And put a violent schizophrenic in a room w/ probable dementia patient. #JadonHayden wiped the man’s streaming blood on his bedsheet. Staff ignored that & claimed to be unaware of assaults after the arrest. That’s a lie. I called them a few times. Westwood Nursing Home Detroit
When local reporters contacted the Westwood Nursing Center on Friday, a man answering the phone – presumably a staff member – would only say the facility’s director was busy with meetings.
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