SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - A couple described their afternoon out in Hillcrest that ended with a violent encounter with a homeless man.
“Fingernails is what I felt — two sharp fingernails,” said Roberto Maldonado.
On the neck of Maldonado is a reminder of a day of fun that suddenly became violent.
“Then I saw that there was blood,” said Maldonado.
Wednesday afternoon, Maldonado and his husband Gregory Ragsdale were sitting at a patio table, having some cocktails at Baja Betty’s, when they noticed a homeless man who appeared to be in his 30s walking toward them.
“Seemed angry. He was saying a lot of things, but not making any sense,” said Maldonado. “He grabbed me with his left hand and almost like he was going to choke me, but I pulled back a little bit, and that's when he scratched me.”
“I said, ‘Hey get your hands off of him!’ and the guy just kept on going,” said Ragsdale.
It wasn't until after the man disappeared, that Maldonado realized the attack drew blood.
Restaurant staff called police. Maldonado was treated by paramedics.
“To me, it's frightening we can't feel safe being at a local restaurant that we come to often,” said Maldonado.
Maldonado isn't alone. Benjamin Nichols, who heads the Hillcrest Business Association, says in the past six months, businesses have reported an increase in examples of violent, destructive and aggressive behavior among the homeless.
“In the past, we maybe had one or two few issues a month. These days, it’s daily, “ said Nichols. “Our own employees and cleaning crews have been attacked. We’ve had homeless people coming into restaurants and stealing food off plates... Homeless people who want to be aggressive have discovered there are no repercussions.”
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Back at Baja Betty's, Maldonado admits a new worry will now be in the back of his mind.
“I'm going to be more apprehensive when I see a homeless person. I'm going to keep my distance,” said Maldonado.
Nichols says his groups has proposed a Clean and Safe program, funded by a tax assessment, to provide security patrols and triage to connect homeless to resources.
He says the city’s Economic Development Department is weighing the proposal, and whether to put it to a vote among property owners.
