A 63-year-old woman has died more than two weeks after she was critically injured in a brutal attack inside a Tacoma psychiatric facility.
The woman died on Monday, March 30, 16 days after the March 14 assault at Wellfound Behavioral Health on South 19th Street, according to Tacoma Police.
Officers responded around 8:10 p.m. the night of the incident to reports of an assault at Wellfound Behavioral Health, a secured inpatient facility on South 19th Street. They found the woman with life-threatening injuries and she was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center.
She was not breathing on her own and remained in critical condition until her death, according to investigators.
Elias Santos Salcedo, 25, was taken into custody at the scene and booked into the Pierce County Jail, according to court documents.
Prosecutors initially charged Salcedo with attempted first-degree murder. Following the woman’s death, the case has been elevated and is now being investigated as a homicide, Tacoma Police said.
Investigators said both Salcedo and the victim were patients at the facility at the time of the assault.
According to a probable cause declaration, the attack appeared unprovoked. Surveillance video and witness accounts indicate Salcedo knocked the woman to the ground and repeatedly struck her in the face and head, according to the declaration.
The assault continued even after staff intervened, with Salcedo returning to strike the woman multiple times before he was subdued, investigators said.
Seven witnesses, including staff and patients, reported the incident and described efforts to stop the attack and provide medical aid, according to court documents.
Salcedo is being held without bail and has been ordered to undergo a competency evaluation.
State records show he has prior felony convictions for third-degree assault, including cases involving health care workers.
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