Left: Two men beating a 77-year-old in Seattle (Real Time Crime Center). Right: Ahmed Osman being arrested (Seattle Police Department).
Two men in Seattle brutally beat a septuagenarian and then went out to eat fast food at a nearby chain restaurant, Washington State police say. And the attack was caught on video.
Ahmed Abdullahi Osman, 29, stands accused of second-degree assault, according to the Seattle Police Department.
The second suspect has yet to be arrested, but law enforcement is searching for him as of this writing, police said.
The underlying incident occurred on the night of April 19, near the intersection of Third Avenue and Pike Street just north of downtown. At the time, the innocent pedestrian was near a pharmacy.
The attack was captured by Real Time Crime Center surveillance cameras, which are targeted toward areas where crime is considered particularly prevalent, according to Seattle-based ABC affiliate KOMO.
Video of the incident and an ensuing arrest of one of the suspects was released and edited together by law enforcement.
In the footage, two men can be seen walking north along the sidewalk while the victim walks slowly southbound. The 77-year-old veers to his left to get out of the pair's way, and the two men appear to try to flank him. Then, one of the attackers is seen punching the victim while the other shoves him down to the ground.
Then, one of the men punches the fallen man. Quickly, the second man pulls his friend away from the victim – and briefly fakes a kick before walking away. The second man then picks up what appears to be a water bottle he left on the ground before returning to the victim.
Here, the video is unclear, but it appears that the second man waves the water bottle in the elderly man's face before finally leaving the scene. The footage goes on for some time as the two attackers stop in an alcove, appear to discuss something with another group, and walk on.
The video cuts over to a different feed showing a different vantage point in an apparent attempt to track the men's movements.
Finally, the video shows the perspective of law enforcement – by way of body camera footage – arresting one of the men just outside a McDonald's.
"Did you hit somebody over there?" one officer asks.
"No, sir," the man replies.
"Are you sure?" the officer presses.
To which the man says: "I'm positive."
Undeterred, the officer retorts, "Alright, because there's about three people that pointed you out."
The second suspect also appears just next to his friend in the footage, but he was not arrested at the time.
"The defendant's decision to assault and recklessly inflict substantial bodily harm on a random elderly man who was just walking down the sidewalk minding his own business demonstrates the defendant is a substantial danger to the community and is likely to commit a violent offense," a charging document obtained by KOMO reads.
Law enforcement later interviewed the victim, who said he had just gotten off the bus and was on his way home when the random attack occurred. The victim was hospitalized for a week to recuperate from a broken arm, a broken knee, and facial injuries, police said.
Osman was arrested later that same night and quickly released before a bail hearing, KOMO reported. An arrest warrant was issued for Osman on April 30, but the defendant is not yet back in custody.