Sickening moment career criminal with 19 previous arrests stalks and hacks 71-year-old stranger in the head with hatchet in Washington
Disturbing new footage has emerged showing a career criminal hunting down a 71-year-old man before hitting him over the head with an axe.
Paleti Anikesi Veniale, 30, was caught on surveillance camera following the older man in a park in Federal Way, Washington, in December last year.
The video shows Veniale following his victim from a distance, before hurriedly running after him with an ax in his hand before hitting him on the head.
According to prosecutors, the attack on the man was completely unprovoked and Veniale punched him several times, even after he fell to the ground.
Two days later, while wanted for attempted murder in connection with the attack, officers shot Veniale.
Paleti Anikesi Veniale, 30, was caught on surveillance camera following the older man in a park in Federal Way, Washington, in December last year
The video shows Veniale following his victim from a distance, before hurriedly running after him with an axe, before hitting him on the head.
The video shows Veniale being chased on foot as he crosses a busy road, before turning around with a large knife in his hand.
The two officers unleash a volley of bullets at the 30-year-old, who then falls to the ground, releasing the knife.
According to CBS12Veniale had run away after the attack on the elderly man who was rushed to hospital with serious injuries to his head, face and chest.
The newspaper reported that there were concerns the man might not survive, but he is now in a satisfactory condition three months after the horrific attack.
Veniale was charged with attempted first-degree murder, with prosecutors citing his “extreme level of violence and extensive violent criminal history.”
Court records seen by the outlet show that Veniale had 19 arrest warrants since 2012, with prosecutors expressing concern that he was at large.
In April last year, he was arrested for assaulting an EMT worker after allegedly punching him in the face in the hospital hallway without provocation.
He has also been arrested repeatedly for attacking firefighters, police, health care workers and strangers.
Veniale was charged with attempted first-degree murder, with prosecutors citing his “extreme level of violence and extensive violent criminal history.”
According to prosecutors, the attack on the man was completely unprovoked and Veniale punched him several times, even after he fell to the ground.
The video shows police chasing Veniale on foot as he crosses a busy road, before turning around with a large knife in his hand
The two officers fire a hail of bullets at the 30-year-old, who then falls to the ground and releases the knife.
CBS12 said he punched a passenger on a city bus in 2017 and knocked out his teeth in another unprovoked attack.
Prosecutors also said Veniale stabbed someone in the neck with a pencil before the attack on the bus.
After his attack at the hospital, he was ordered to Western State Hospital for psychiatric care.
Veniale was released after two months in the state hospital and returned to prison for pending cases.
He spent two weeks in custody before being released on December 18, just two days before he allegedly attacked the 71-year-old.
Veniale crossed a road to avoid police before he was shot with the axe two days after the incident
In a bizarre twist, one of the officers who shot Veniale in December had a previous run-in with him in May 2020.
Police encountered Veniale with a machete and a knife at a homeless camp, where he jumped at them and began shouting while holding the weapons.
Veniale was arrested after the officers tased him and was charged with third-degree assault.
After he pleaded guilty to that charge, a judge ruled that the time he had spent behind bars was sufficient and released him.
In the charging documents, prosecutors said: “The suspect is unlikely to comply with future court orders.
“Additionally, the suspect faces a standard range, including the deadly weapon enhancement, of approximately 19.5 to 25 years of age for this charge.”
Veniale is currently in the King County Jail and his next hearing is scheduled for June.