Image
© Juliet PapaJoseph Naimo, 81 and son Rocco , with black eye and stitches, after being beaten and mugged
Son Saves The Day But Only After Getting Beaten Up, Too

Police on Staten Island are looking for a man and woman robbery team that viciously attacked an elderly couple as they were entering their home on Sunday night.

As CBS 2's John Slattery reports from the Tompkinsville section is the borough, it was the victims' son who put an end to the beatings.

Joseph Naimo, 81, and his son, Rocco, were recovering Wednesday night from the beatings they received. Joseph's wife, however, took the worst of the attack.

"They beat her up bad. They beat her up bad. They beat her up very bad," Joseph said.

Linda Naimo, 74, is hospitalized with a broken nose, broken jaw and fractured skull, police told Police told 1010 WINS' Juliet Papa.

Joseph Naimo, who had celebrated his birthday earlier in the day, suffered only cuts and bruises, but his 49-year-old son was visibly hurt, at the hands of the male and female robbery duo, suffering a gash above his left eye, which was also blackened.

Image
© Juliet PapaVariety Store and residence of the Naimos who were mugged for $18
The incident happened outside the building they own on Victory Boulevard, where they've operated a variety store for 40 years. They'd just closed the store and were entering the door to their apartment up above, when suddenly they were attacked from behind.

"The male kept on punching us, never stopped," Joseph Naimo told 1010 WINS' Juliet Papa. "Then when he stopped he just kept on saying, 'Give me the money.'

"So, I took out a wallet with business cards and he reached in my pocket and took out $18," he said.

Their son, who was upstairs, heard screaming, ran down and attempted to fight off the two intruders.

"I tried to get involved and tried to stop it. They started beating me up," Rocco Naimo said. "They punched me continuously and hurt me."

As for the two thugs who ran off, there were only vague descriptions. Joseph described the female assailant as "short and a little plump," and that she wore a fur-trimmed hoody. The man was said to be around 6-feet tall.

"He's an animal. That's all I have to say. If it wasn't for my son, I think he would have killed the two of us, for nothing," Joseph Naimo said.

A police source told Slattery detectives have very little to go on, which is why they're asking anyone who may know anything, to come forward.

Linda Naimo is being treated in an intensive care unit, in critical condition.

There is a $ 12,000 dollar reward for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the suspects.

If you have any information about this incident, you are asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS. Callers may remain anonymous.