Man critical after Del. parking-lot assault

A man is in critical condition after he was beaten in the parking lot of a Newark, Del. shopping center Friday night.

The victim, 22, was sitting in the front passenger seat of a car parked in the lot of the Food Lion grocery store at Pencader Plaza, the Delaware State Police said in a news release.

Around 6:15 p.m., two men allegedly opened the vehicle's door and confronted the man, punching him in the head and upper body, police said.

A 57-year-old woman who was in the driver's seat was not injured, according to investigators.

The suspects fled the lot in a white SUV of unknown make and model after the attack, police said.

Police said the 57-year-old woman then drove the victim from the lot, calling 911 when he became unconscious as a result of his injuries.

Troopers and medics met the woman at the nearby Royal Farms, located at 865 Old Baltimore Pike, and performed CPR on the victim, police said.

He was rushed to the Christiana Hospital Trauma Center, where he was admitted in critical condition.

Police said preliminary interviews indicated the attack was not random, and that the victim was likely targeted. There wasn't yet word on a motive Saturday afternoon.

The suspects are described as two 5-foot-8-inch to 5-foot-9-inch tall black males between the ages of 20 and 25. No further physical description was immediately released, and no surveillance images were available.

Troopers were continuing to investigate.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Delaware State Police Detectives at 302-739-5939, or to call the Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333.