Luca Saggio, 46, of Stony Point, asked the passing Bosfa Restaurant employee for water and didn’t like the response, witnesses told responding officers, Old Tappan Police Chief Joseph J. Tracy said.
Saggio then “followed the employee into the kitchen of the restaurant and punched him in the head,” Tracy said.
The employee suffered “a significant injury to his eye and head area,” the chief said.
Responding officers rendered medical aid before an Old Tappan Ambulance crew took him to Hackensack University Medical Center.
Saggio, meanwhile, fled the Old Tappan Road eatery, the chief said.
Police contacted the Italian national, who “adamantly refused” to return, Tracy said.
Detective Charles DiMaria charged Saggio with aggravated assault following an investigation, he said.
Saggio turned himself in to police with his attorney six days after the assault, the chief said. He was booked and taken to the Bergen County Jail. A judge in Hackensack released him hours later pending further court action, records show.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Middletown-Wallkill and receive free news updates.