July 15, 2022 - MERCED – Steven Austin Jr. (33) was arrested for felony elder abuse after a violent assault on a 67-year-old man.

On Thursday, July 14th, 2022, at 6:41 P.M., officers responded to the 2400 block of N Street for a fight in progress. When officers arrived, Austin was detained by a neighbor that intervened on behalf of the victim. Officers located a 67-year-old victim that had been seriously assaulted by Austin.

Witnesses reported that Austin punched the victim in the face, stomped him while on the ground, and used his forearm to choke him. The victim was transported to an area trauma center for medical treatment and is listed as stable condition.

The investigating officers suspect alcohol and/or drugs were a contributing factor to the assault. Austin was arrested for felony elder abuse and battery causing serious bodily injury. He was booked into custody at the Merced County Jail.

Case Number: 22-41566

Merced Police are asking anyone with any information regarding this crime to contact Officer Alejandro Arias at 209-385-6905 or by email at ariasa@cityofmerced.org.  

Other ways to contact us or report crime include:

For any emergency call or text 911

For non-emergency call 209-385-6912

Anonymous Tip Line (Non-emergency) call 209-385-4725

Anonymous Tips online at http://www.mercedareacrimestoppers.org/index.html.

Some crimes can be reported online through the Merced PD website https://www.cityofmerced.org/departments/police.

Source: Merced Police Department