TORONTO — A World War II veteran was brutally beaten and left for dead by two teens outside an Eagles Lodge in Spokane, Washington on Wednesday.
Police say the victim appears to have been picked at random.
Delbert Belton was sitting outside the lodge Wednesday evening where he was waiting for a friend. The friends had planned on playing a game of pool.
Police received a call about an assault at 8:15 p.m. and found Belton sitting in his car with serious head injuries. He was taken to hospital where he died Thursday morning.
Investigators say Delton was attacked in the parking lot belonging to the Fraternal Order of Eagles.
Belton was hit with large flashlights said his daughter-in-law, Bobbie Belton.
“They used those great big, heavy flashlights. The doctor said he was bleeding from all parts of his face.”
Police arrested one 16-year-old suspect on Friday morning and charged him with first-degree robbery and first-degree murder.
Authorities continue to search for another, described as a black male between the ages of 16 and 19, seen on security footage.
The second teen was born in 1997 a local NBC station reports, and is suspected of driving a stolen vehicle.
Both teens have a juvenile criminal record.
The WWII vet took a bullet to the leg during the Battle of Okinawa when he was 18.
The retired aluminium worker, known as “Shorty” to his friends, was a regular at the lodge where he played pool a few times a week.
Belton’s wife died several years ago and he is survived by a 65-year-old son.
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