A heart surgeon who died after he was punched outside a hospital in Melbourne’s east had to be restrained as he was thrashing about after the attack, a court has been told. Patrick Pritzwald-Stegmann, 41, died in hospital four weeks after he was punched in the head in the foyer of Box Hill Hospital on May 30. Joseph Esmaili, 22 of Mill Park, has appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court via video link charged over the death. The court was told Mr Pritzwald-Stegmann, a father of two, was bleeding from the nose and tried to get up after the attack. Defence barrister John Desmond said treating doctors noted Mr Pritzwald-Stegmann was agitated and disorientated and he was not able to be placed onto a spinal board. The court heard one witness, a security officer, said he had to help restrain the surgeon as he was thrashing about as he was being taken to the emergency department. In a previous court hearing, police said they believed the surgeon was attacked following an argument with the accused over smoking near the hospital. The incident was captured on CCTV. Six doctors will be among the witnesses to give evidence at a committal hearing scheduled for February 12. Esmaili was remanded in custody.
