BARTLETT, Ill. — An Illinois man is facing charges after police say he assaulted a grocery store bagger with special needs, punching the man in the face and kicking him.
Bruce Mirabella, 50, of Bartlett, is charged with felony aggravated battery, according to the DuPage County state's attorney. The Chicago Sun-Times reported Mirabella also faces a misdemeanor charge of resisting a police officer.
Authorities said Bartlett police officers were called around 9:45 p.m. Monday to a Jewel grocery store, where employees reported that a customer there to buy alcohol had punched a bagger with special needs in the face. The man then kicked the unidentified employee in the back before leaving the store.
Investigators identified the assailant as Mirabella, who was arrested a short time later at his home, the state’s attorney said.
The seriousness of the victim’s injuries was not released.
"The charges against Mr. Mirabella are outrageous," DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement. "Violently attacking an innocent man, particularly a special needs individual, while he is working will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
Mirabella was booked into the DuPage County Jail and released Tuesday on $50,000 bond, jail records show. His next court date is in August.
Cox Media Group
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