A disturbing incident at Rossi Park along the Bradenton Riverwalk is making rounds on social media after a local resident captured part of the encounter on video.
The incident, which took place at around 8:00 PM on Sunday, May 10th, has left many in the Bradenton community frustrated and calling for accountability.
Matthew, a local resident who posted about the incident in the popular Facebook group “Eff You! I’m from Bradenton!”, said he was simply enjoying the sunset when things took an ugly turn.
He noticed a group of teenagers suddenly begin targeting an older gentleman who was seated alone on a bench, minding his own business.
According to Matthew, the teens repeatedly hurled vulgar insults at the man, calling him names including “fat a**” and “old f***er” among other degrading slurs.
Matthew was only able to catch a portion of the incident on video, but it was clear in his account that the elderly man did absolutely nothing to provoke the teenagers.
“It’s sad that kids nowadays have no respect,” Matthew wrote. “I want to reiterate that the older gentleman did nothing to warrant this kind of behavior or attention. It’s sad to see young people act with such a lack of class and respect.”
The post quickly drew reactions from fellow Bradenton residents, many of whom expressed outrage over what took place.
Cielo Perez, who commented on the post, revealed that she actually recognized one of the teens involved.
“One of them is my neighbor’s son and he could care less, they don’t even respect their own damn father,”
She wrote, making it clear that the behavior was not out of character for the young man.
Sarah Matuska responded to Cielo’s comment by suggesting that stronger parental intervention was needed.
“Time for a little boot camp for him then, especially if parents know their kids are being like this,” she said.
Matuska also raised an important point about bystander responsibility, directing her frustration not just at the teens but at the adults who may have witnessed the incident without stepping in.
“I hope one of those kids’ parents is on here and sees this,” she wrote. “See something, say something. Not everyone is able to defend themselves in these situations. Was any adult telling these kids to stop or did they just go straight to recording this man being verbally attacked?”
Her words resonated with many who feel that speaking up in these moments matters just as much as recording them.
Not everyone in the comments was on the same page, however. Scot Rosenberry raised eyebrows with his response, writing, “So I don’t see what the kids are doing wrong? I mean am I missing something here,” a comment that drew its own share of backlash from other community members who felt the answer was obvious.
The incident has reignited a broader conversation in Bradenton about youth behavior, parental accountability, and the responsibility of bystanders when vulnerable people are being targeted in public spaces.
As of now, it is unclear whether the families of the teenagers involved have been contacted or whether any formal action has been taken.
