GRAMERCY — A Chelsea man snuck into Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center posing as a visitor and tried to attack a patient, who then managed to subdue the attacker until help arrived, according to a police report.
Charles Bruno, 50, posed as a guest of the 34-year-old hospital patient on Dec. 11 shortly after 9 p.m. in order to get to his room, police said. The attacker knew the victim as an acquaintance, according to authorities.
When Bruno got to the man’s room, he tore out the wires connecting the victim to monitoring machines, which alerted hospital staff to the fracas, police said.
By the time staff and security rushed into the patient’s room, the victim had managed to subdue Bruno and was holding him down, according to authorities.
Bruno flailed and punched at staff as security guards tried to remove him, leaving one guard with lacerations to his face, police said.
Bruno did not manage to inflict any injuries on the patient.
Prosecutors charged Bruno with four counts of misdemeanor assault charges, and a judge ordered him held on $1,000 bail pending his next court date on Dec. 23, court records show.
Representatives of Beth Israel and a lawyer for Bruno did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
