Three health workers have been
arrested on suspicion of beating mentally disabled clients in a
Palermo centre for the mentally ill, sources said Thursday.
The Ben Haukal Centre is located in the Brancaccio Quarter of
the Sicilian capital.
The three staff have been charged with mistreatment.
Patients were "routinely struck and subjected to continual
physical punishment and psychological humiliation," the arrest
warrant said.
Police surveillance devices, both video and audio, recorded
"disconcerting actions, a far cry from the centre's mission",
police said.
One operator allegedly beat up a young man who refused to remain
sitting, while another allegedly threw a chair at a client.
In some cases the patients were pushed and shoved, thrown onto
sofas or slapped so hard their faces hit the walls, police said.
The staff showed a "systematic use of violence", police said.
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