NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – A Bronx man was arrested following a months-long investigation into a road rage incident in which a 77-year-old man was beaten and subsequently fell into a coma, prosecutors announced on Thursday.
Efrain Escobar, 29, was arrested on charges of aggravated assault and endangering an injured person, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said.
On April 8, 2024, at around 7 p.m., the Fort Lee Police Department responded to a report of an assault at the Plaza West Mall in New Jersey.
When officers arrived, they found the 77-year-old victim beaten and that the suspect had fled the scene. The victim was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center, where he suffered serious bodily injury and was in a medically induced coma for nearly two months.
Following an investigation, it was determined that after a minor car collision between the victim and Escobar. After a brief argument, Escobar allegedly assaulted the victim by "punching him in the face, knocking him unconscious and leaving him incapacitated."
Detectives noted that the two did not know each other. They later identified Escobar as the suspect and he was arrested on Wednesday.
