Police are hunting a gang of thugs who launched a vicious attack on a defenceless elderly man in Hamilton.

The victim was resting in bushes near the Freemasons' Hall, Reid Street, when the unprovoked assault took place on Thursday night.

The 64-year-old told officers he was woken before he was kicked about the body, then pushed over a wall onto a sidewalk by the group.

The beating continued, Police added, before the culprits fled by foot towards Burnaby Street after they were confronted by a concerned passerby.

The victim was taken to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital with a broken right leg. The Pembroke resident's condition was described as stable on Friday.

Police said the suspects were young males, about five feet, ten inches tall and of slim build. Police called on witnesses who saw the attack, near the junction of Chancery Lane at 11.45 p.m., to call 295-0011 or the confidential Crimestoppers hotline on 1-800-623-8477.

The violent incident comes after a good Samaritan who helped a badly beaten man in a recent separate Hamilton assault said the injuries were the worst he had ever witnessed.

The victim was apparently attacked ? along with his brother and a friend ? in Fagan's Alley, off Front Street, by a gang who jumped out of a dark SUV vehicle in the early hours.

A Bermuda Police spokesman yesterday said the two city beatings were not being linked at this stage.