LEWISTON – A man was hospitalized late Friday after he was apparently beaten by a group of people in an alley along Bartlett Street.

Witnesses said the man stumbled into the back of a bar at Walnut and Bartlett streets, bleeding from the head at about 10 p.m. Others said they saw a group of people running along Walnut Street, toward Blake, moments before police arrived.

The victim’s identity was not immediately available. Police officers and emergency paramedics treated him on the sidewalk in front of Del’s Bar on Bartlett Street. Several people said the man had not been attacked there, but had run inside the bar seeking refuge.

While officers spoke with witnesses at the scene, others fanned out across the downtown area in search of suspects. It was not clear if a weapon was used in the attack. It was believed the victim suffered a head wound, including a gash to his forehead.

The man was taken to Central Maine Medical Center where he was being evaluated later Friday night. Police were still searching for suspects and investigating the circumstances that led to the beating.