PORTSMOUTH — A Dover man died Saturday after his skull was fractured during an unprovoked attack inside The Page restaurant and bar early Saturday morning, said Deputy Police Chief Corey MacDonald.

PORTSMOUTH — A Dover man died Saturday after his skull was fractured during an unprovoked attack inside The Page restaurant and bar early Saturday morning, said Deputy Police Chief Corey MacDonald.



Found dead at his Dover apartment was Joshua Krantz, 24, who police say was beaten from behind on the lower level dance floor at The Page.



Arrested in connection with the assault was Zachary O'Neill, 24, of 12 New York Street, Dover, MacDonald said.



Krantz's cause of death has been classified as “a fractured skull resulting in an acute epidural hematoma,” while the manner of death (if it was homicide, for example) has not yet been determined, MacDonald said.



O'Neill is charged with a felony count of first-degree assault because “the state medical examiner's office has not yet ruled the death a homicide,” the deputy police chief said.



According to MacDonald, Krantz was struck repeatedly on the head by O'Neill, the incident was not reported to police, and Krantz did not receive medical treatment. At the time of the assault, O'Neill was on bail for a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct, related to a January 2012 brawl at the High-Hanover parking garage, MacDonald said.



O'Neill is expected to be arraigned Wednesday morning in the Portsmouth Circuit Court.



According to his obituary, Krantz was a lifelong resident of Epping, a 2006 graduate of Epping High School where he played football, and a part-time disc jockey. He was an enrollment account specialist for Bottomline Technologies at the time of his death, according to the death notice.



Ted Mountzuris, co-owner of The Page, said he was working the night Krantz was assaulted and has since reviewed video surveillance images of the incident. He said the assault appeared to be a “scuffle,” as opposed to an “all-out fight.”



Mountzuris said his security staff escorted the assailant out of The Page and asked Krantz if he wanted medical attention, which he declined.



“He said he just wanted to go home,” said Mountzuris.



“We believe this was a random act of violence,” he said. “It's a tragedy. My heart goes out to his parents and his siblings and his friends. It's sad to see someone lose their life at this young age. For someone to do that, it's just sad.”



The Page co-owner said he made the surveillance images available to police and has been working with detectives for the Dover and Portsmouth police departments. He said all agree that alcohol does not appear to have played a role.



The Page has been the scene of multiple violent crimes in recent years, most notably in July 2011, when Steven Bohn — an An Army veteran who was awarded a Purple Heart for injuries suffered during an attack in Afghanistan — was severely injured during a beating outside the Hanover Street bar and restaurant. The July 16, 2012 beating ruptured Bohn's spleen and led to the convictions of four Portsmouth people for their roles in the four-on-one-beating.



Assistant County Attorney Howard Helrich previously said Bohn bumped into May or his girlfriend on a dance floor in The Page, and a “pushing match” ensued. Both were asked to leave the bar and the friction escalated into a “full blown fight” outside, Helrich said.



“My heart goes out to his family,” Bohn said Tuesday when he heard about Krantz's death. “It's very tragic. Unbelievable.”



Bohn, who said he'll always have medical problems connected to his beating at The Page, said he's since stopped going to bars and nightclubs.



“There's overcrowding, alcohol, someone gets pushed and that's all it takes,” he said. “These random acts of violence make me sick.”



In spite of his lingering injuries, Bohn said he never filed a lawsuit and “there's not a day that goes by that I don't count my blessings.”



One of Bohn's assailants, Anna Battle, 22, was sentenced to a year in jail, with half suspended, for kicking Bohn during what Rockingham County Superior Court Judge Will Delker called a “vicious” beating.



Codefendant Jessica King pleaded guilty to a felony count of being an accomplice to second-degree assault and was sentenced to a year in jail, with three months suspended. King's boyfriend and codefendant, Daniel May, was sentenced to two to five years in the men's state prison. Codefendant Paul Hayes pleaded guilty to a felony count of second-degree assault and was sentenced to 2� to seven years in state prison.



The state Liquor Commission's involvement with The Page has included a $1,000 fine imposed last April, with a three-day suspension for allowing an intoxicated person to loiter in a cocktail lounge. Half the fine and one day of the suspension were placed in abeyance, pending no similar infractions.



On March 28, 2012, as a result of disorderly conduct at The Page, a $250 fine was imposed, according to the Liquor Commission. In 2010, a $250 fine was imposed because of an intoxicated patron. And in 2009, The Page was found responsible for serving a minor.



For the 2009 incident, The Page was fined, staff was ordered to undergo training and the bar's liquor license was suspended for three days, but the suspension was held in abeyance for two years, according to the Commission.



Last August, the Liquor Commission's Bureau of Enforcement conducted an undercover sting on Aug. 3-4 when, said Chief Eddie Edwards, investigators “yielded evidence” of employees consuming alcohol while working, employees consuming alcohol in non-approved areas, over-service of alcohol to patrons, and the bar's failure to maintain an orderly premises.



Mountzuris said Tuesday that he and his business partner, John Dussi, are considering a conversion of The Page's downstairs nightclub area to an Italian and/or seafood restaurant. He said the conversion has been under consideration for about a year and will likely come in “a phased approach.”



“We can see that coming within a year,” he said. “The Page, as a sports restaurant, is fine. The downstairs lounge area, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights, brings in a different audience of 22- to 25-year-old people.”



Anyone with information about the Saturday morning assault is urged to contact detective Kristyn Bernier at 610-7529. Anonymous tips can be made through Seacoast Crime Stoppers at 431-1199, texting to CRIMES (274637) and including TIPSCS in the message, or logging onto www.seacoastcrimestoppers.org.



Seacoastonline.com and the Portsmouth Herald published Krantz's obituary today.