MADISON, Wis. (CHANNEL 3000) - A homeless man sleeping outside the Wisconsin Veterans Museum in downtown Madison was attacked early Friday and knocked unconscious, according to a release from Madison police.

Police said the 51-year-old was taken to a hospital with significant head injuries, including bleeding inside his skull and a fractured orbital bone.

The victim told police his attacker also victimized, to a lesser degree, others sleeping near him. He said he believed he was punched about 20 times, and said that at one point the stranger asked him to empty his pockets, which he did not do.

The attacker is described as black, in his 20s, 5 feet 1 inch tall, weighing 160 pounds and wearing dark clothing.