Patient goes into cardiac arrest after visitor injects him with unknown substance, police say

Credit: Christopher Furlong

Credit: Christopher Furlong

It sounds like something out of a Hollywood movie script, but an incident at Northside Hospital in Sandy Spring, Georgia nearly killed a man after police said someone injected him with an unknown substance.

"I never even thought that that was something people did outside the movies," local resident Kevin Maloney told WSB.

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Investigators said a visitor attacked a 50-year-old patient inside the hospital. The attacker used a syringe to inject the patient with an unknown pink substance, immediately causing the Brookhaven man to go into cardiac arrest.

A nurse called 911 after witnessing the disturbing scene.

The victim survived, and investigators told WSB that the visitor and his victim may know each other. In fact, they live in the same Brookhaven apartment. Their relationship is unknown.

The incident leaves many questions about a possible motive and how the incident could happen with so many nurses and doctors around.

“That’s crazy. Security should be up,” said local resident Guang Lu.

Officials with Northside Hospital confirmed on Friday that they have launched an investigation into the incident.

The hospital sent WSB a statement, saying:

"The safety and security of our patients are most important to us. It is our understanding that the suspect in question was the patient's visitor.

"Upon discovering the incident, hospital staff immediately contacted Sandy Springs police, who are conducting an investigation. We are cooperating fully."

It’s still unclear what substance was in the syringe.

Although police have named a suspect in the incident, no one is under arrest or facing any charges at this point.

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