A doctor was shot in the neck Wednesday night by a patient in the emergency room of the VA Medical Center in Riviera Beach.
The shooter was a double amputee in a wheelchair, officials said.
The doctor was taken to St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach for surgery, and was said to be in stable condition.
The 59-year-old wheelchair patient, identified by the FBI as Larry Bon, got to the hospital at about 8:30 a.m. and had been combative all day, according to the VA. While staff members were checking his emotional state, he had a gun hidden on him.
At about 6:20 p.m., a tech was in the restroom with the patient and saw him loading the weapon. When the tech went to seek help, the shooter came out firing, a source said.
Another staff member was grazed by a bullet.
He was taken into custody and no one else was at the hospital at 7305 N. Military Trail was harmed. Authorities say he served in the U.S. Army briefly during the 1970’s, is the target of an arrest warrant from Michigan and may be homeless in South Florida. Bon’s injuries were not combat-related.
The FBI is leading the investigation into what happened.
“The subject was taken into custody,” FBI Special Agent Justin Fleck told reporters during a briefing outside the hospital.
“The same doctor who sustained the neck injury was the same person who subdued the subject…he’s doing well and he did a heroic thing today,” Fleck said.
The hospital was under lockdown for two hours, an employee said.
The director of the medical center, Donna Katen-Bahensky, issued this statement:
“An incident has occurred this evening at the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center. There is no danger to patients or staff at this time and the area has been secured. We are working with local law enforcement and the investigation remains ongoing.”