NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- A Rikers Island guard had several of his front teeth knocked out after an attack by an inmate Saturday night, union officials said.
According to the Correction Officers' Benevolent Association President Benny Boscio said Sunday that at around 11:30 p.m., two inmates at the Anna M. Kross Center left one of the housing areas and entered an unauthorized vestibule.
When officers tried to take the inmates back to the housing area, the Bloods gang member punched one officer in the face and knocked him to the ground.
"It's open season on New York City Correction Officers who continue to be assaulted by violent inmates who are emboldened to unleash their brutality against our officers because they know they face little to no consequences for their heinous crimes," Boscio said in a statement.
"Fortunately, the other officers were able to quickly intercede and quell the attack," he added.
The officer, whose name wasn't released, was taken to an area hospital where the guard received stitches and ultimately lost one tooth, union officials said.
The 30-year-old suspected attacker had been at Rikers on first-degree felony assault charges, and the Department of Correction is pursuing his re-arrest, spokesman Jason Kersten said.
"The safety and well-being of our personnel is paramount, and we do not condone any attacks on our staff, who work around the clock to keep our facilities safe," Kersten said.
