A United States veteran from Yonkers was charged Wednesday with attempted murder and assault in connection with a hatchet attack inside a Chase Bank in Manhattan that left one victim slashed in the head and leg, authorities say.
Aaron Garcia is undergoing psychiatric evaluation at Bellevue Hospital following Sunday's 5:30 p.m. attack in the bank at 42 Broadway. It wasn't immediately clear which branch of the armed forces he served with, nor how long he did.
According to police, Garcia was already inside the bank when the victim, a 51-year-old man, entered. No words were exchanged before Garcia allegedly whipped out the hatchet and attacked the bank customer with it, officials have said.
Jarring surveillance video shows the suspect walking on the bank floor, a hatchet in his hand. The victim is at an ATM when the suspect attacks him from behind, leading to an intense struggle and repeat blows with the weapon.
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He eventually ends up on the floor, still fighting for the hatchet, as the suspect continues to slash him. He smashes multiple ATMs with the hatchet as the victim bleeds on the floor.
Cops responding to a 911 call about an assault found the victim with three slashes to the head and one to the right leg. He was taken to a hospital conscious and alert. A roommate told News 4 the victim is out of the hospital but cannot speak.
Further details on the circumstances leading to the attack weren't clear, nor was it known if Garcia had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.
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Police in Yonkers say Garcia has four active bench warrants and one active arrest warrant on charges including criminal contempt, harassment, aggravated harassment and stalking. It appears all those charges are domestic in nature and stem from prior arrests and an unspecified incident the day after Valentine's Day.
Garcia has three prior arrests between March 2020 and July 2020, Yonkers police said. Details on those cases weren't immediately clear. The arrest stemming from the bank attack is his first in New York City, authorities said.
