1 Aug 2012 10:25 AM EST

-by Rebecca Baird-Remba, Staff Writer; Image: John Yoos mugshot from a 2008 arrest in Hawaii (Image Source: CBS NY)

A Brooklyn man was ordered held without bail Tuesday after allegedly trying to kill a Spanish tourist with a hammer near City Hall Park.

Hugo Alejandre, 31, was eating lunch with his girlfriend on a bench near Murray St. and Broadway around 3 p.m. Monday when John Yoos, 43, suddenly ran toward him and smashed his left temple with a hammer, according to the Daily News.

Yoos, dressed in a navy blue suit, reportedly attacked Alejandre at least ten times while angrily screaming about Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Nazis, DNAinfo reported. He allegedly called Alejandre a “Nazi mother-cker.”

Alejandre was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he was treated for a fractured spine and lacerations to his chest and head.

Yoos was arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on attempted murder charges on Tuesday.

“This was a completely random act of brutal violence on a total stranger,” said District Attorney Allison Altman during Yoos’ arraignment.

His defense attorney, public defender Alyssa Gamliel, offered no explanation for the unprovoked, violent attack.

Yoos is due back in court on August 3.