Elderly man beaten, knocked unconscious while waiting to use Temple City ATM

TEMPLE CITY, Calif. (KABC) -- An elderly man was badly beaten and knocked unconscious while using an ATM in Temple City.

Raul Fonseca, 79, has bumps on his head and is badly bruised, but he said he feels lucky to be alive.

Fonseca was released from the hospital Monday morning after the suspect beat him while he was waiting to use a Bank of America ATM around 6:30 p.m. Saturday. He was by the machine when a man walked up to him yelling, "Do you know me?"

Fonseca said when he attempted to push the suspect away, the man started beating him.

"Now I see that he tried to take money from me. He tried to do that. He was crazy," Fonseca said.

He was knocked unconscious by the suspect, and he woke up surrounded by Good Samaritans and paramedics. But the attacker had escaped.

Authorities said they have a limited description of the suspect. He is described as white, with blond hair, 25 to 35 years old, between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighing about 160 pounds.

Fonseca's family is worried about the emotional impact of the attack.

"I see the fear in him. He's very nervous, he's very fearful and he's really not that type of man," said Fonesca's son, Raul Fonseca, Jr.

"This world is changing. Life worth nothing today, anybody kill you," Raul Fonseca said.

Authorities hope to get footage from the bank's surveillance cameras that can help them find the suspect.