A Southern California man remains hospitalized after he was brutally beaten and stabbed in the head by his neighbor.
On July 22, the victim, Michael Roque, 35, left his Loma Linda apartment and was walking to his car on the way to work at around 8:30 a.m.
That’s when Roque’s neighbor, Mark Eldridge, 37, allegedly approached him from behind and struck him in the head with a rock. He continued beating Roque with the rock and tried to slice his throat before stabbing him on the side of his face and head with a knife.
San Bernardino County deputies responded to the scene and found Roque bleeding profusely on the ground.
“It was a nightmare,” said Raul Gomez, Roque’s father. “That’s the only way I could put it, at that point. You can’t believe something like this would happen.”
According to his family, Roque and the suspect did not know each other at all.
He was rushed to the Loma Linda Medical Center where remained in an induced coma in the ICU. Gomez believes the suspect had targeted Roque and waited for the right moment to attack.
Authorities initially received a call from Roque reporting the assault. Around the same time, they also received a call from Eldridge claiming a burglary had taken place at his apartment.
Deputies later determined Eldridge’s residence “lacked forced entry or any evidence to suggest a break-in.”
Evidence of the assault, however, was found and Eldridge was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon. He was later booked at the West Valley Detention Center for attempted murder and is being held on $500,000 bail.
On Saturday, loved ones said Roque had awoken from his coma and was able to speak a bit, but still appeared disoriented and confused. Doctors said that a 3-4 inch portion of the blade used to attack him was still lodged inside his head.
“Doctors told Michael if they remove it, he will bleed out and if they leave it there, it can cause infection and possibly kill him,” said Jaime Roque, the victim’s cousin, on a GoFundMe page. “Doctors have let Michael make the decision and he said to keep it in.”
Loved ones said Roque used to work at Loma Linda Medical Center before recently taking a new job at UC Riverside. They’re hoping he’ll make a full recovery soon.
“He’s a happy, fun-loving guy,” Gomez said emotionally of his son. “He loves life, loves his work, loves his friends. Just a great guy.”
The motive behind the brutal attack remains under investigation.
A GoFundMe page to help Roque’s family with medical expenses can be found here.
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