It was a horrifying ending to a physical altercation at a psychiatric hospital in Pembroke Pines Friday after a patient gouged out another patient's eyeballs, authorities said.
Pembroke Pines Police responded to South Florida State Hospital on Friday afternoon after two patients who were sharing a room got into an argument that quickly became violent.
"It's a violent, heinous act," Pembroke Pines Police Capt. Christian Rogers said.
Police said during an argument about a towel on the door, the suspect punched the victim in the face before dragging him onto the ground.
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The suspect then continued to punch the victim in the face and then pulled both of the victim's eyes out of his eye sockets, police said.
"There was a lot of blood at the scene," Rogers said.
Both the suspect and victim were court-ordered to be at the facility as patients, police added.
The suspect, identified as 34-year-old Reinaldo Bermeosolo, was charged with aggravated battery.
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The arrest report noted that the victim was rushed to a nearby hospital with severe injuries, and hospital staff later determined that the eyeballs, which were placed on ice after the attack, could not be re-attached.
"The victim suffered severe injuries to his face and as a result of these injuries, he's now permanently blind," Rogers said.
Police said the fight lasted about seven minutes and that authorities weren't notified until an hour later.
After the attack, police said the suspect was seen sitting on a chair outside the room acting "nonchalant."
"This is a serious incident," Rogers said. "We're investigating to the best of our ability."
NBC6 reached out to the hospital for a statement but have not heard back.
