Suffolk Man Head-Butts, Fractures Nose Of, Paramedic: Police

SPEONK, NY — A Speonk man was arrested Monday after he acted violently, fracturing a paramedic's nose, police said.

According to Southampton Town police, Manuel Lemus, 31, was arrested at about 1:08 p.m. On February 6, Lemus had been contacted by police for an unrelated incident, where he exhibited violent and unruly behavior, indicative of being under the influence of drugs and or alcohol, authorities said.

Community response officers at the scene requested ambulance personnel, due to his level of impairment, authorities said. Once medical personnel were on scene, Lemus continued his violent behavior toward paramedics, eventually head-butting one of them in the nose, police said.

Follow-up investigation revealed that although at first the injury the paramedic sustained appeared to be minor, it was, in fact, a fractured nose, police said.

On Monday, Southampton Town police community response officers located Lemus in front of his residence and took him into custody; he was charged with second-degree assault, a felony, for his unprovoked attack on emergency medical personnel, which occurred during the course of performance of duty, police said.

Lemus was arraigned in Southampton Town Justice Court where he was remanded to the Suffolk County Jail in Yaphank, police said.