Police: 3 Robbed Dying Philadelphia School Counselor

PHILADELPHIA – Police say three people who noticed a Philadelphia school counselor unconscious and dying in an emergency waiting room robbed him instead of going for help.

Police say 63-year-old Joaquin Rivera spent nearly 80 minutes waiting in an emergency room after complaining of pain down his side.

But they say he died of an apparent heart attack at Aria Health's Frankford Campus before seeing a triage nurse.

Surveillance video shows three people talking with Rivera before he passed out and then taking his wristwatch.

Police arrested 44-year-old Richard Alten at the hospital and are seeking his companions, whom Capt. John McGinnis described as homeless addicts. Alten's public defender has declined to comment.

Aria Health also declined to comment, citing the criminal investigation and patient confidentiality.