NORTH MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — A man was arrested Thursday after North Miami Beach police said he used racial slurs before attacking another man with a glass beer bottle and then following him into a bathroom and repeatedly striking him with a metal water bottle.
Lesmar Roberto Cruzata Vidal, 32, of Hialeah, was arrested on a charge of aggravated battery with a weapon with prejudice, according to an arrest report.
Police said the attack happened shortly before 1:30 a.m. at a home in the 16800 block of Northeast Fourth Court that police said was operating as a hostel.
According to the report, responding officers arrived at the scene to find Cruzata Vidal and the victim standing outside the home.
The victim told police he had been living at the hostel for about six months and had returned roughly 10 to 15 minutes before the confrontation. He said he was leaving to walk to a nearby liquor store when he saw Cruzata Vidal loitering in the parking lot.
According to the arrest report, the victim said Cruzata Vidal called out “Yo, n****, yo n****,“ without provocation.
The victim asked whether Cruzata Vidal was speaking to him, and Cruzata Vidal confirmed that he was, the report stated.
According to the report, an argument followed and Cruzata Vidal allegedly struck the victim in the face with a glass beer bottle.
Police said the victim suffered a severe, deep laceration to his right cheek.
The victim told investigators he pushed Cruzata Vidal away and ran inside the home, where he asked other residents to call 911.
He then went into a bathroom to clean his face, according to the report.
Police said Cruzata Vidal followed the victim into the bathroom and struck him in the face approximately 10 times with a metal water bottle.
The second attack left the victim with a large abrasion in the center of his forehead that broke the skin, along with visible swelling, according to investigators.
Officers said they found a trail of blood leading to the bathroom where the victim said the second attack occurred.
Multiple witnesses declined to identify themselves or provide written statements but told officers that Cruzata Vidal was the primary aggressor, according to the report.
Police said Cruzata Vidal told officers he had never met the victim and claimed the victim approached and struck him without provocation.
Police described Cruzata Vidal as “extremely confrontational and inebriated” and said officers were unable to obtain a consistent account from him. Officers also noticed a laceration on his left hand, the report noted.
Cruzata Vidal was taken to Jackson West Medical Center for medical clearance before being transported to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
Police collected the broken glass bottle and metal water bottle as evidence.
According to the arrest report, the aggravated battery charge includes a prejudice enhancement because of the racial slurs police said Cruzata Vidal used before the attack.
As of Thursday afternoon, Cruzata Vidal remained held at TGK. Online jail records listed his bond as “to be set.”
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