Keys man punches woman with pacemaker, she has heart attack, deputies report

60-year-old victim said she believed the punch may have damaged device

Monroe County Sheriff's Office deputies said Christopher Costa, 56, of Key Largo, punched a woman in the chest Friday causing her to go into cardiac arrest. (WPLG)

KEY LARGO, Fla. – A Key Largo man was arrested Friday night after a fight in which deputies said he punched a 60-year-old woman in the chest. The victim told Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputies that she believed the punch damaged her pacemaker. A deputy on the scene said while she was speaking with him, she began suffering cardiac arrest.

Christopher Alan Costa, 56, was charged with aggravated battery.

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Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to Captain Jax Mobile Home park in the 103000 block of the Overseas Highway at 6:43 p.m. Friday after reports of a fight.

Investigators said that when they arrived, they learned there had been a disagreement between two people over a woman who was previously banned from the park.

At some point during the melee, the victim said Costa punched her in the chest. While speaking with Deputy Richard Rodriguez, the report said the woman started having a medical emergency and the deputy began performing CPR on her.

Paramedics arrived and took the victim to Mariner’s Hospital in Tavernier. Rodriguez reported that the woman was stable as she was transported to the hospital. Her condition was not known Saturday.

Costa was taken to jail, according to sheriff’s deputies.


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