Boston radio host beaten in NYC

By Jonathan Saltzman, Globe Staff, and Christine Hauser, New York Times

A Boston-area radio talk show host was viciously beaten with a baseball bat during a robbery in front of a Bronx apartment building, according to New York City police, who released a harrowing surveillance video today of the attack.

Pelagio de la Cruz, 52, who hosts a Spanish-language call-in show on WESX in Chelsea, was attacked in front of a building in the University Heights neighborhood shortly after 3:30 a.m. Sunday when he returned after an evening out. He was in New York visiting his children, who live in the building with their mother, his estranged wife, police said.

Police said two men had apparently seen de la Cruz on the street and followed him to the doorway of the building, where he had been pushing the button to try to get in.

One man came up behind him and swung at his head with the bat, hitting him seven more times after he fell to the ground. The other man rifled through de la Cruz's pockets. They stole his wallet and a cell phone, then fled in a dark-colored car, police said.

Police released a surveillance video of the attack in the hopes of finding the assailants. De la Cruz cannot be seen in the video.

De la Cruz lay unnoticed for about 30 to 45 minutes before a resident entering the building saw his body and called 911, police said.

He was taken to St. Barnabas Hospital and was in stable but critical condition Friday. Police said he has been unconscious since the attack and could lose an eye.

Luis Rodriguez, who manages the radio station, said de la Cruz had worked there for about 10 months and was hosting a show that aired from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.

"He's a good guy, a good fellow, very friendly,'' Rodriguez said.

The manager said he learned of the attack from a friend of de la Cruz's who is a frequent guest in the studio.

"They speak on all different things, and they love what they do,'' Rodriguez said.

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