A man is charged with attempted murder, among other things, for allegedly assaulting and hitting a man he found in bed with his wife with a baseball bat, causing him to be hospitalized.
John Dimmig is also charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and burglary with assault following the June 17 incident in which police said he and his wife Christie Barbato stormed into a home in Lake Worth, Fla. with a colleague found in bed.
An enraged 33-year-old Dimmig, allegedly carrying a black Rawlings aluminum bat, closed the door behind him and charged at the man, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office police wrote in an affidavit seen by .
A caning allegedly ensued, with Dimmig hitting the man – whose name has been removed from the above file – at least three times.
Police said the man had come to town from Arizona and that he and Barbato were colleagues. The home where the alleged altercation took place was a rented Airbnb.
John Dimmig, 33, faces charges including attempted murder for allegedly assaulting a man he found in bed with his wife (right) and beating him with a baseball bat until he was taken to hospital
Police officers said he stormed into a home in Lake Worth, Fla., and found his wife Christie Barbato (seen here) in bed with a co-worker she met in January. The victim – who was not named by investigators – came to town from Arizona and rented the apartment as an Airbnb
“I felt like he wanted to kill me,” the traveling x-ray technician who took the beating allegedly told emergency services after he was found at the scene bleeding from the head.
Officials, summoned to the temporary accommodation by a distressed Barbato, who is also a CT scanner, “observed the living room of the apartment covered in blood and streaks leading into the bedroom.”
In the bedroom, police found the injured victim, who was said to be lying on his back and bleeding profusely from a wound to his head.
Photographs were taken of the scene before firefighters arrived and began treating the victim – who was then transported to St Mary’s Hospital as a trauma alert.
Due to the nature of the injuries, a crime scene was set up at the front door of the apartment, which police say did not belong to the victim.
He told investigators about the alleged altercation, saying it took place “while he was in bed with Barbato.”
The affidavit uses his account along with Barbato’s and describes how police believe the incident happened.
‘[The victim] “Heard the front door of the apartment building open,” the file says. ‘[He] explained that he then got up to see who it was.
John Dimmig is also charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and burglary with assault following the June 17 incident in which police say he stormed into a home in Lake Worth, Florida, with a Rawlings black aluminum bat
Officials, summoned to the temporary accommodation by a distressed Barbato, who is also a CT scanner, “observed the living room of the apartment covered in blood and streaks leading into the bedroom.”
Barbato eventually managed to tear Dimmig away from her alleged lover – after which Dimmig was heard saying, “Don’t get close to my goddamn wife again!” Pictures posted to the couple’s social media accounts suggest they may have only recently married – but the date goes back to 2018
‘[The victim] stated that when he got to the living room, he saw a man running towards him with a bat.
It adds: ‘[The victim] It was also reported that the man lunged at him, pinned him to the ground and hit him three times with an aluminum bat.”
Surveillance video, which included audio, taken of the property backed up the man’s claims – reportedly hearing Barbato yell, “John!” Stop! He’s bleeding!’
Barbato finally managed to tear Dimmig away from her alleged lover – after which Dimmig was heard saying, “Don’t get close to my damn wife again!”
In a separate video, the affidavit reads: “[Dimmig] can be heard screaming, “Piece of shit! F**k you!” [and is then] seen leaving the residence and walking towards the street, bat in hand
The potentially incriminating footage has yet to be released and is currently being used in Dimmig’s trial, which could carry a life sentence – if the attempted murder charge stands.
Before questioning Dimmig, officers encountered a distraught Barbato, whose social media suggests she is a mother of at least three children and may have recently married the suspect.
Before questioning Dimmig, officers encountered a distraught Barbato, whose social media suggest she is a mother of at least three children
Possibly damning footage of the attack has not yet been released and is currently being used in the suspect’s trial – which could result in a life sentence
In an interview, Barbato told police that her husband was responsible for the gruesome beating and that she was “lying in bed with her colleague, whom she has known since January 2023, in the bedroom of the apartment.”
She added that she met the victim for drinks earlier in the evening and that she was invited to his apartment for what appeared to be a dirty try.
entered a vacation home with a metal baseball bat and hit a man he believed had been in bed with his wife.
After Barbato spoke to police, they interviewed Dimmig at the couple’s home in nearby Lake Park. He claimed he didn’t leave the apartment all day, except for a quick trip to a grocery store.
Officers added that when they arrived at the home, they found Dimmig loading his Hyundai sedan with two sacks of clothes.
When asked about the weapon used in the attack, Dimmig acknowledged that he owned a bat, but dismissed claims that he hit everyone with it.
But police quickly found evidence that appeared to contradict the suspect’s statement: Officers registered a thug outside the couple’s laundry room, as well as a torn black T-shirt and white singlet that appeared to have blood on them.
There were “small hairs” in the barrel of the racquet, according to the officers who wrote the affidavit.
They also added that Dimmig’s black Hyundai accents matched the description of a car filmed on a traffic camera a minute after the attack a block away from the Airbnb.
Dimmig is currently in custody without bail and has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him. His court appearance is scheduled for July 17.