Disturbing new footage has emerged showing a career criminal hunting down a 71-year-old man before striking him over the head with a hatchet.
Paleti Anikesi Veniale, 30, was caught on surveillance camera following the elderly man in a park on Federal Way, Washington, in December of last year.
The video shows Veniale follow his victim from a distance, before hurriedly running up behind him wielding a hatchet before striking him over the head.
According to prosecutors, the attack on the man was completely unprovoked and Veniale struck him numerous times, even after he had fallen to the ground.
Two days later, while wanted for attempted murder in connection with the attack, officers shot Veniale.
Paleti Anikesi Veniale, 30, was caught on surveillance camera following the elderly man in a park on Federal Way, Washington, in December of last year
The video shows Veniale follow his victim from a distance, before hurriedly running up behind him wielding a hatchet before striking him over the head
The video shows giving chase to Veniale on foot as he crosses across a busy road, before he turns with a large knife in his hand.
The two officers unleash a volley of bullets on the 30-year-old, who then drops to the ground letting go of the knife in the process.
According to CBS12, Veniale had ran off after the attack on the elderly man who was rushed to hospital with critical injuries to his head, face and chest.
The outlet reported that there was concern the man might not survive but he is now in a satisfactory condition three months on from the horrifying attack.
Veniale was charged with attempted murder in the first degree, with prosecutors citing his ‘extreme level of violence and extensive violent criminal history’.
Court filings seen by the outlet show that Veniale had 19 bench warrants since 2012, with prosecutors raising concerns over him being at large.
In April of last year, he was arrested for attacking an EMT worker after he is said to have punched them in the face with no provocation in a hospital hallway.
He has also been repeatedly arrested for assaulting firefighters, police and healthcare workers, and strangers.
Veniale was charged with attempted murder in the first degree, with prosecutors citing his ‘extreme level of violence and extensive violent criminal history’
According to prosecutors, the attack on the man was completely unprovoked and Veniale struck him numerous times, even after he had fallen to the ground
The video shows police giving chase to Veniale on foot as he crosses across a busy road, before he turns with a large knife in his hand
The two officers unleash a spray of bullets on the 30-year-old, who then drops to the ground letting go of the knife in the process
CBS12 said that in 2017 he punched a passenger on a bus in the city and knocked out their teeth in another unprovoked attack.
Prosecutors also said Veniale had stabbed someone in the neck with a pencil before the attack on the bus.
After his attack in the hospital, he was ordered to be taken to Western State Hospital for psychiatric care.
Veniale was released after two months in the state hospital and booked back into jail for pending cases.
He was in custody for two weeks before being released on December 18, just two days before he is said to have attacked the 71-year-old.
Veniale ran across a road to evade the cops, before he was gunned down two days after the hatchet incident
In a bizarre twist, one of the officers who shot Veniale in December had a previous run-in with him in May 2020.
Police encountered Veniale with a machete and a knife at a homeless encampment where he jumped toward them and started yelling while clutching the weapons.
Veniale was arrested after the officers tased him and was charged with assault in the third degree.
After he pleaded guilty to that charge, a judge determined that the time he spent behind bars was sufficient enough and released him from custody.
In charging documents, prosecutors said: ‘The defendant is unlikely to comply with future court orders.
‘Furthermore, the defendant faces a standard range including the deadly weapon enhancement of approximately 19.5 to 25 years for this charge.’
Veniale is currently in the King County Jail with his next court hearing scheduled in June.