Fla. Teen Says 'Act of God' Helped Him Survive Vicious Attack on Face by Naked Man
A Florida teenager is thanking an "act of God" as the reason he survived a recent brutal attack from a stranger who police say could have been on drugs.
Tony Grein, 18, of Delray Beach, Fla., was attacked by a violent 28-year-old male running through The Colony, a residential community located near South Military Trail in Delray Beach, Tuesday evening. The suspect, Anesson Joseph, had reportedly been running nude through the community and attacking people he came across, including beating them and biting at their faces.
The first person Joseph attacked was a 66-year-old former New York City police officer who, although he attempted to fight off his attacker, was beaten badly by Joseph. Then, close to 8:30 p.m., Joseph came across Grein, who attempted to fend off his attacker using a box cutter, as Grein suspected Joseph was trying to attack his sister, who was also outside at the time. Joseph reportedly began beating Grein and biting at his face, and the teen sustained visible cuts on his ear and face that required stitches, as well as severe bruises.
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"Somehow I survived it. It had to be an act of God," Grein, who was much smaller in stature than the suspect, told local WPTV-5. "There's no way it was me."
"I have a lot to be thankful for; that today I'm here breathing, that God gave me mercy, that He gave me a chance to repent," Grein added.
Police arrived upon the scene of the attack shortly after Joseph attacked Grein, and they attempted to stop Joseph verbally. However, authorities present at the scene say Joseph ignored requests to halt, took on a fighting stance and began to charge at the officers while uttering grunting sounds. The officers then tried to stop Joseph with a taser gun, but when that didn't work they were left no choice but to shoot him. Joseph died later at a local hospital.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told the Palm Beach Post that the attacker was "obviously delirious on something."
"This guy had superhuman strength. He was a big guy to start with. He was at least 6 feet 3 inches and 250 pounds. He was not fat. He was like an NFL linebacker. Basically he was terrorizing people up and down the street," Bradshaw added.
Police have not ruled out the possibility that Joseph was on drugs at the time of his attacking spree, and autopsy reports will confirm if the suspect was under any influences at the time of his crime spree and death.
