Afghan war veteran beaten near N.H. bar
A war veteran and Purple Heart recipient was beaten unconscious early Sunday morning outside a Portsmouth, N.H., bar, according to reports.
New England Cable News and other news organizations reported that Steven Bohn, an Army veteran who served in Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom, was badly beaten by two men and two women outside the Page Restaurant and Bar.
Portsmouth police declined to identify the victim yesterday, but detailed the alleged assault. Bohn, who appeared on several news programs, was taken to Portsmouth Regional Hospital, in serious condition and suffering from internal injuries. He underwent emergency surgery and is recovering at home this week. He could not be reached for comment.
Daniel May, 23, of Portsmouth was arrested and charged with assault and resisting arrest. NECN reported that two of May’s friends, Paul Hayes, and Jessica King, were also arrested and are facing felony assault charges. Police have an arrest warrant out for the fourth suspect, but no details were released on that person.
According to police, an argument began inside the bar between the two male suspects and the victim. May and Bohn were asked to leave, and once outside, Bohn was ganged up on by the others, police said.
NECN reported that when Bohn tried to walk away, he was jumped, and May slammed his head through a glass window.
“I went to go put my cigarette out, turned back around, and that’s when I got hit from the back,’’ Bohn told NECN in an interview. “I guess I got slammed into a plate-glass window.’’
Bohn, a retired Army specialist, was awarded the Purple Heart after a suicide bomber nearly killed him in Afghanistan in 2008, NECN reported.
Police did not discuss what might have sparked the dispute.
Police are offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest or indictment of suspects.
They asked anyone who witnessed the beating to call Portsmouth police at 603-436-2145 or to leave an anonymous tip at 603-431-1199.
May was ordered held on $10,000 cash bail, police said.
John M. Guilfoil can be reached at jguilfoil@globe.com. 