Video of a scuffle between a grown man and a 13-year-old boy has begun making rounds online, and the public wants authorities to hold the adult assailant accountable for his actions.
The ordeal unfolded this past Tuesday in front of Havana Savannah, a coffee shop that’s located in the Valencia neighborhood of Santa Clarita, California.
The man — believed to be about 46 years old, according to KTLA — had been shopping at a nearby Circle K when he encountered the group of kids, who are all students at Rio Norte Junior High School.
“He said, ‘back up’ [and] starting cursing at us. He pushed me and my friend,” Chase Devil recalled, according to KTLA.
On-scene witnesses reportedly note that the man proceeded to follow the middle schoolers before grabbing one by his backpack and shoving him onto the ground.
One bystander proceeded to record the parking lot scuffle, and the matter swiftly drew the attention of others nearby.
“Somebody call 911,” one person says in the video, while another emphasizes the fact that the altercation was started by “a grown-ass adult.”
“That’s a f**king eighth grader!” another onlooker yells.
Several adults wound up getting involved to get the adult to back off, with one woman notably kicking the assailant a few times, too; a short while later, the attack is broken up, and viewers can see that the teen thankfully didn’t appear to be seriously injured.
View this post on Instagram
“I could smell alcohol on his breath like he might have been drinking. When he got up, he was disheveled,” Ricky Harmison, one of the adults who intervened, told KTLA.
Authorities were ultimately called to the scene, though the assailant had already fled in a silver Toyota Tacoma, the New York Post reports.
According to KTLA, a report was filed, though no arrests have been made as of Wednesday; however, this could definitely change in the near future.
“What could possible charges in the case be? We can definitely start with battery — depends on the investigation,” Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputy Natalie Arriaga said, according to the outlet.
People with any additional information on the incident are encouraged to call Santa Clarita Valley’s Sheriff’s Station at (661) 260-4000.
