SLAMMER TOSSED IN JAIL
Nursing-home attack ‘fiend’ charged
A Michigan man was charged for allegedly pummeling a 75year-old nursing home patient in a caught-on-camera attack that later drew the ire of President Trump.
Jaden Hayden, 20, filmed himself repeatedly punching his roommate at the Westwood Rehabilitation Nursing Center in Detroit on May 15 and stealing his credit cards, authorities said.
Hayden, of Ypsilanti, allegedly set up his cellphone so the camera could capture the attack that left Norman Bledsoe hospitalized with head injuries.
He was charged Sunday with two counts of assault, larceny and two counts of stealing a financial transaction device, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said.
He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment later that day and was held on $300,000 bond, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Hayden, whom the facility said had been admitted for rehab, allegedly told staff at the nursing home that his roommate had fallen out of bed, but he was busted after posting video of the attack online — catching the attention of the president.
“Is this even possible to believe?” Trump tweeted last Thursday.
“Where is this nursing home, how is the victim doing?” he added.
The Detroit police also reviewed the footage and arrested Hayden the same day Trump sent the tweet.
“The alleged actions of this defendant are truly and uniquely disturbing,” prosecutor Kym Worthy told the Detroit Free Press.
“We must be able to trust our loved ones in specialty care facilities. I truly hope that the facts of this case are one of a kind,” she added.
A nephew of the victim, Kevin Bledsoe, told local television station WXYZ that the family is going to get justice for the beating.
“We [are going to] crush you like a grape. It’s only a matter of time. It’s only a matter of time,” Kevin Bledsoe said.
He added that his uncle is healing at a hospital and they expect him to make a full recovery.
In a statement through its lawyer, Saif Kasmikha of Midwest Legal Partners, the nursing home said: “Westwood has been cooperating with the police and will continue to do so. The safety, health, and well-being of our residents remains a top priority of Westwood. We will continue to monitor the situation.”
The video also sparked outrage online after it was shared widely on social media.
“Lock the piece of s--t up TODAY,” actor and sports commentator Michael Rapaport tweeted with an article about the beating.