Man beaten with metal chain in SF, suspect arrested

Lights and siren of police car in San Francisco. Lights and siren of police car in San Francisco. Photo: Bill Hutchinson Photo: Bill Hutchinson Image 1 of / 28 Caption Close Man beaten with metal chain in SF, suspect arrested 1 / 28 Back to Gallery

A 64-year-old man was in a hospital battling for his life after getting beaten with a metal chain by an attacker in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco, officials said Monday.

The incident occurred about 12:42 a.m. Friday as the victim was walking on the 200 block of Turk Street, a couple blocks from the Powell Street BART station, police said. A man walking in front of the victim abruptly turned around and, without warning, began beating him with a metal chain, according to the San Francisco Police Department.

Police officers who responded to the attack found the victim suffering from life-threatening injuries and he was taken to a hospital, police said.

Officers managed to quickly track down the 38-year-old suspect and placed him under arrest. His name was not immediately released.

A motive for the attack is under investigation.

Filipa Ioannou is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: fioannou@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @obioannoukenobi