Bearded Man Bludgeons Met Security Guard Over Crooked Painting: Police

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Police are searching for a man wanted in connection with an assault that occurred inside the Metropolitan Museum of Art this weekend.

The suspect — who happens to sport an incredibly bushy beard — allegedly struck a 46-year-old male security over the head with a bottle after a verbal argument inside the museum on Friday, March 3, around 6:15 p.m., police told Patch.

The argument supposedly started when the alleged attacker, a museum guest who paid entrance fee, complained to the security guard about a crooked painting, an NYPD spokesman told Patch.

The unidentified victim suffered a laceration to the head and was treated for his injuries at New York Presbyterian Hospital, police said.

The suspect (pictured above) is described as a man in his early 20s standing 5-foot-8 and weighing around 150 pounds, police told Patch. The man was last seen wearing all black clothing, including a black knit cap, police said. The suspect's most defining characteristic is his Bunyan-esque brown beard, seen in surveillance video and photos released by the NYPD.

Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or 1-888-57-PISTA (74782) for Spanish. The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime stoppers website or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) and entering TIP577. All tips are confidential.

Photo by NYPD.