Man charged after 62-year-old woman attacked outside Middletown library

A Middletown man faces charges after police say a 62-year-old woman was left with a skull fracture and a brain bleed following an unprovoked attack outside the local library.

Byron Bell, 37, was allegedly captured on video surveillance “striking, stomping and kicking” the woman on the sidewalk outside the Russell Library on Broad Street last Thursday, according to the Middletown Police Department.

Patrol officers and detectives from the Major Investigations Unit worked to identify Bell as a suspect before his photo was shared with officers working on each shift, police said Thursday. A day after the assault, officers on Court Street spotted Bell, who police say fled before he was found hiding behind a residence on St. John’s Street.

Bell has been charged with first-degree assault on an elderly victim, second-degree breach of peace, interfering with police and first-degree reckless endangerment.

The 37-year-old’s bond was reduced from $750,000 to $250,000 during a hearing in Middletown Superior Court on Monday, court records indicate. He is next scheduled to appear in court on May 23.