LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — An elderly Asian man is living in fear after he says he was attacked physically and verbally by his neighbor.
According to police records, the incident happened on May 30th.
With tears in his eyes, 75-year-old Amadeo Quindara told Channel 13 about the violent attack. He shared that he was sitting in his garage resting, when his neighbor first approached him, threatened him, and left.
Home security footage captured the moment 44-year-old Christian Lentz approached Quindara once again in his garage.
Lentz could be heard telling Quindara he would ‘be on a ventilator’ and saying ‘die’ multiple times before walking away. Lentz could also be heard yelling racial slurs at him.
"The only thing I could do is shout,” Quindara said.
The beating left Quindara with deep cuts on his head, a black eye, and an emotional suffering – that he says can’t be treated.
“Physically, you could recover from that but if you keep thinking about what happened, that is the thing that hurt me most,” Quindara said.
Lentz was arrested and charged with felony residential burglary. He was released from jail less than a week later.
Former Clark County District Attorney, David Roger, gave insight into the charge and why more couldn’t be done.
“The problem that we have here is that it does not appear that police had sufficient evidence to prove a felony against this victim. It’s not that they didn’t want to,” Roger said.
Roger said because the actual alleged beating wasn’t caught on camera, and Quindara didn’t have what classifies as ‘substantial bodily harm’ under Nevada law, officers had limited options.
“Statute requires them to show either a loss of limb, loss of bodily function, or prolonged pain and suffering,” Roger said.
Roger said had police had more concrete evidence, Lentz could have faced additional charges including enhancements for beating a person over the age of 60.
“I know that police struggled with this because the conduct is so reprehensible, the victim is so innocent and they want to be able to charge this individual with more crimes but the law has really kind of tied their hands,” Roger said.
On Monday, the current Clark County District Attorney, Steve Wolfson, filed a misdemeanor battery charge against Lentz.
“That’s a band-aid on this situation because a misdemeanor carries up to 6 months in the Clark County detention center whereas a felony would be prison time,” Roger said.
As Quindara continues to recover at home, just two doors down from the man who he claims attacked him, he hopes for justice and worries for his well being.
“Inside my house, which is where I think is the safest place for me to stay, I didn't think this was going to happen,” Quindara said.
Quindara is in the process of filing a restraining order against Lentz.
Christian Lentz is scheduled to be back in court on July 3rd.
