SOUTHBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - A disgruntled emergency room patient accused of stabbing and critically injuring a nurse at a hospital in Southbridge was ordered held without bail Thursday at his arraignment.
Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said Conor O’Regan, 24, attacked the nurse at Harrington Hospital on Wednesday around 10:15 a.m. and stabbed her four times.
O’Regan and the 65-year-old nurse were inside a small triage room when the stabbing happened, according to investigators. The nurse was airlifted to UMass Medical Center with what were said to be “significant wounds.”
O’Regan had been at the hospital three weeks prior to the stabbing, was upset about the treatment he received on his injured wrist and returned to violently attack someone, according to court documents. The documents also indicate that O’Regan told police that someone “commanded him to be a warrior for the cause.”
The nurse, who has not been identified, is said to be in critical but stable condition. She suffered stab wounds to the face and arm areas.
Police said O’Regan initially fled the scene, but officers later arrested him at his apartment on Main Street. Early said O’Regan does not have a criminal record.
Prosecutors say O’Reagan visited his parents home to obtain a knife and then sharpened before driving to the hospital. They say officers later found a bloody knife in his car.
Sarah Taylor, who worked with O’Regan at the McDonald’s in Charlton, said she did not think he was capable of hurting anyone, but that he had changed over the last few months.
“His hair started getting longer, he started to look more and more unkempt. His facial hair grew out. His uniform was messy,” said Taylor. She said last week, he asked their boss if he could take time off because he was “not doing well.”
O’Regan is charged with assault with intent to murder and aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. He’ll be held pending further evaluation. He is due back in court Monday.
The stabbing is under investigation.
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