COVID-19 Patient Charged With Murdering Fellow Patient In Lancaster Hospital
LANCASTER (CBSLA) – A coronavirus patient has been charged with murdering a fellow patient while both were receiving treatment at a Lancaster hospital last week.
The violent beating death occurred on the morning of Dec. 17 inside Antelope Valley Hospital.
According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, 37-year-old Jesse Martinez beat an 82-year-old man to death with an oxygen tank while the two were being housed in the same hospital room for the coronavirus.
Martinez allegedly got angry when the victim began to pray, the sheriff's department reports.
The victim died of his injuries the following morning, on Dec. 18. His name was not released.
The two men did not know each other prior to the attack.
Martinez has since been arrested on a charge of murder and elder abuse, along with an enhancement for hate crime. His bail is set at $1 million.
It's unclear if he is in jail or still in the hospital.
