NYPD: Brooklyn Artist Attacked By Bat-Wielding Man
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A Brooklyn artist is fighting to stay alive. Police say he was attacked by a stranger.
Cellphone video caught the brutal beating. A man with a baseball bat is seen hovering over his victim, who was on the ground with his bike, CBS2's Andrea Grymes reported Tuesday.
"For him to get, you know, assaulted the way he was is just heartbreaking because he has seen so much and survived so much in the city," said Shannon MacGregor, the victim's best friend.
Investigators said it happened last Wednesday at around 5:30 p.m. at the intersection of Flatbush and Parkside avenues in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens.
A worker at a food cart said victim Pierre Francillon was ordering when the suspect approached him.
"He ask him for food. He ask him for money. [Francillon] ignored him and paid not attention for him," the worker said.
Shortly after, investigators say the suspect, identified as Ashanti Robinson, beat Francillon over the head, leaving him unconscious.
Police nearby quickly arrested Robinson when he tried to run away.
MacGregor described Francillon is an incredibly talented artist who has lived in Flatbush for years, and added he did not deserve what happened to him.
"He's a beautiful person. He's a beautiful soul. He painted consistently, has a huge, huge collection, a huge catalog of work," MacGregor said. "I need people to take care of themselves because lashing out at other people that don't deserve it is not acceptable in any way, shape or form."
Robinson is facing numerous charges, including assault and attempted murder. He was arraigned and held without bail.