Man Charged in Baseball Bat Attack, Brawl at Rochester Apartment Complex

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- The Olmsted County Attorney’s Office charged a man suspected of committing an attack with a baseball bat then partaking in a brawl at a Rochester apartment complex last summer. 

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The court document says Rochester Police responded to the alleged attack and brawl in the early morning hours of August 19. Three men are suspected of being involved in the incident. 

The complaint says the attack and subsequent brawl occurred at an apartment complex on 41st St. in northwest Rochester. 

A review of security camera footage showed a man later identified as 35-year-old Gerardo Augustin Ortega of Rochester come out of one of the apartment buildings with what appeared to be a baseball bat and swing it at the victim’s upper body, the court document says. 

Ortega and two other men, who are named in the complaint but not charged in connection with the incident, are then seen punching the victim. The video indicates they landed several pouches on the victim before fleeing the area, according to the complaint. 

The victim told police he had gone to the apartment complex with his wife to collect property when a man he did not know, believed to be Ortega, emerged from the building holding an aluminum baseball bat and struck him in the ribs, the complaint says. 

The victim said he caught the bat on Ortega’s second swing and said two other men and Ortega began punching him, according to the charging document. 

An ambulance crew responded to the scene to treat the victim. Medical personnel reported concerns the victim suffered broken ribs and a broken jaw, the complaint says. 

Ortega was charged Thursday with a count of felony second-degree riot with a dangerous weapon. He’s scheduled to make his first court appearance next month.

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