Filipino nurse assistant returns to Phl after assault case

A Filipino nurse assistant has returned to the Philippines after being arrested and charged with assault by the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office in New Jersey, the Philippine Consulate in New York said.

The consulate's Assistance to Nationals section confirmed that Denmark Francisco was deported following an order from the U.S. Immigration Court. Consul General Senen Mangalile visited Francisco at the ICE detention facility in Massachusetts to assess his condition.

Francisco and fellow Filipino Jovi Esperanza were accused of assaulting a 52-year-old male patient at a rehabilitation facility. The victim was reported to be in critical but stable condition following the alleged incident.

Both suspects were held at Ocean County Jail for several weeks before being transferred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. Esperanza was voluntarily deported in February.

The two claimed they acted in self-defense after the patient allegedly attacked them for reprimanding him about smoking inside the facility.