"I think it's a disgrace. I mean the fella wasn't doing nothing but shopping. Why should somebody harm him?" asked Dennis Logue of Fortescue, New Jersey.
Fifty-nine-year-old Bill Ritchie of Millville is recovering from serious injuries he sustained after the unidentified man in surveillance video came up from behind and attacked him Sunday morning at the Acme on Bluebird Lane in Millville.
Ritchie described the episode in a phone interview from his hospital bed: "Guy walked up behind me, grabbed me, threw me up in the air and slammed me on the floor for no apparent reason I know of."
Police say Ritchie was dumped on his head and suffered a fractured skull, a bruised brain, a cracked vertebra and a ruptured spleen.
"(It) appears to be random at this point," says Detective John Redden of the Millville Police. "The victim doesn't know who the attacker is and didn't say anything to him, just walked up and grabbed him and slammed him."
After releasing the surveillance tape, Millville detectives say they are following up on numerous tips about the identity of the man who was wearing a baseball cap and camouflage jacket.
"I'm very anxious to find this person," says Leslie Ritchie, the victim's wife. "He obviously hurt my husband very severely. We don't want it to happen to anybody else and I want to know why he decided to pick on Bill."
Bill Ritchie is a sandblaster at a glass company in Bridgeton, New Jersey. His injuries could put him out of work for several months.
Meanwhile, at the Acme in Millville, customers are scratching their heads and concerned about the unprovoked attack.
"I thought it was so bizarre that he was out at the grocery store and somebody would come up and assault him," said Cory Kross of Millville.
"Scary when you're alone. I come here in the morning sometimes by myself," said Marge Astheimer of Millville. "Be a little afraid to do that."
