Veseli man damages Stress Unit

Published 7:56 am Friday, November 24, 2017

A Veseli, Minnesota, man trying to escape from the Stress Unit at Mayo Clinic Health System-Austin on Nov. 22, caused what’s estimated at more than $1,000 in damage before he was restrained by Austin police officers and incarcerated in the Mower County Jail

Guy Joseph Novak, 51, is facing a felony count of first-degree damage to property. The maximum sentence is five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

According to the criminal complaint, Novak broke three windows at a nurses station, a wooden shelf, several lights, an exit sign and a keyless entry scanner. Ceiling tiles were also missing in two places.

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Staff at the facility said Novak was upset because he didn’t want to be there and he wanted to use a phone. At one point, he tried to climb into the ceiling and had to be removed by Mayo security.