NYC screenwriter, 60 sues luxury condo after he was viciously attacked in elevator

A New York City screenwriter is suing his luxury apartment's management after a construction worker working on the building allegedly violently assaulted him in an elevator.

Richard Regen, 60, filed the suit with his wife Lili Abir on Tuesday against the ABC Management group, construction company M Daddio Inc., The Artists' Condominium, and construction worker Andrew Caban.

The February 2 attack left Regen in the hospital for eight days and in need of major head surgery.

Regen was leaving his apartment on West 23rd Street to attend physical therapy after debilitating stroke two years ago, when Caban allegedly assaulted him in the elevator and left him unconscious before fleeing.

Construction worker Andrew Caban is seen in front of Richard Regen in the elevator of his apartment building on West 23rd Street in February

Screenwriter Richard Regen and his wife, interior designer Lili Abir are suing over the attack which left him with a brain injury

Attorneys for Regen said he suffered a brain bleed, traumatic brain injury, and seizures following the accident. 

Regen was later forced to receive neurosurgery over skull damages he suffered, with photos from his recovery showing a row of staples running down his scarred head.

The Regens are seeking damages that have not yet been determined, with attorneys saying the defendants demonstrated negligence that resulted in Regen's injuries and ongoing recovery. 

The Manhattan DA is pursuing criminal prosecution of Caban, attorneys said.

Attorney Nathan Werskman said Caban had been holding the elevator during his construction work, and then rode it to Regen's floor after the elevator was repeatedly called there.

Werksman said Regen - whose speech had been affected by his stroke, according to the lawsuit - told Caban that he wasn't allowed to hold the elevator, which prompted the construction worker to grow angry and say 'Do you want to get hit?'

Security footage from inside the elevator showed Regen backed into a corner as the pair spoke, before Caban approaches him, shoves him against the wall, and then punches him twice over the head.

Regen was knocked to the ground, where he slumped apparently unconscious for several moments. 

Caban stood over Regen while he waited for the elevator to arrive at the lobby, apparently saying something to the limp body before leaning over him to push a button on the elevator's panel.

Caban punches Regen in the building elevator and leaves him unconscious on the floor

Regen was forced to undergo major surgery to repair his damaged skull (right) after the attack

'After brutally attacking Regen… Caban stood over Regen's body as the elevator descended to the first floor, but offered Regen — who was gravely injured — no help,' the lawsuit read. It alleges Caban than 'fled the premises.'

'The Defendants violated a most sacred right,' attorneys wrote. 'Safety within one's own home.'

'New Yorkers should not fear being attacked in their own elevators by anyone, let alone by the people specifically hired to work on their buildings,' Werksman told the Post.

Regen's wife heard part of the altercation through the closed elevator doors.

'I never — in a million years — thought something like this could happen to my husband in our own building,' she told the New York Post. 

Richard Regen's luxury apartment in downtown Manhattan where he was attacked

Regen was transported to the Bellevue Hospital intensive care unit where he stayed for eight days. 

Werksman said Regen's injuries forced him back into physical therapy, and that he needs supervision around the clock.

On the day of the attack, he was going to practice a speech he was giving for his graduation from the rehabilitation program he had been in since his stroke, according to the New York Post. 

Caban is due in court on Wednesday over ongoing misdemeanor assault and harassment charges from the incident, according to public records. 

His attorneys told The Post he has plead not guilty, and pointed out that the video does not include audio of what the pair said to each other in the elevator.

Public records show the Regens bought their apartment near NYC's High-Line in 2022 for $4million.

'Above all else, we hope with this lawsuit to protect other people so it doesn't happen to them,' Ms. Regen said.