READING, Pa. – According to authorities, a man staying at the Hope Rescue Mission shelter in Reading is in the hospital after another man stabbed him and threw a chemical substance in his face.
“When he left the shower area, he was attacked. He was stabbed, twice. But the worst part of this unprovoked attack was the defendant, Patrick Woolson, threw some sort of substance on the face of his victim,” said John Adams, Berks County district attorney. “That substance which do not know, at this point, what it was.”
The prosecutor says the substance caused severe burns to his face; he is now recovering in a burn unit.
“This incident is very isolated. We have had very few incidents at Hope Rescue Mission. It’s generally a very safe location for the individuals who are staying there. So it was quite surprising,” Adams said.
The CEO of Hope Rescue Mission said in a statement:
“I hope the community realizes that this type of violence is unusual and uncommon here. We ask for your prayers for the safety of all staff, guests, and volunteers.”
The prosecutor states that Woolson faces multiple charges, including aggravated assault, and that they are trying to determine what motivated him to do this and what chemical substance he used.
“When we have a situation like this, where the incident is completely unprovoked, the first thing that comes to mind is that there must be some mental health issues,” Adams said.
Woolson is being held in the Berks County Jail.