BONITA SPRINGS, Fla. — A neighborhood dispute over dog waste spiraled into a violent altercation in Bonita Springs and it was all caught on camera.
Watch as Fox 4's Anvar Ruziev visits the neighborhood to find out what happened:
The incident unfolded on Princess Lane, where deputies say a 70-year-old man and his 59-year-old neighbor got into a physical fight after one of their dogs defecated on the other's lawn.
In exclusive interviews with Fox 4, Conrad Wear—the man seen in the video exchange—said the entire confrontation started after he forgot a poop bag during his walk.
“I went halfway down that street and she had an accident in someone's yard,” Wear recalled. “So I was trying to hurry home to get a baggie so I could come back and clean this lady's yard up.”
But before he could return, Wear said 70-year-old John Barrett approached him from behind.
“He told [me] 'my brother told you not to walk down this street with that dog anymore” Wear said. “And I turned around and said 'what did you say'? And he punched me with both hands right in the chest and knocked me backwards.”
Video of the incident shows the two men trading blows in the street as a bystander shouts in the background, “Let him go!”
According to the Lee County Sheriff's Office, no arrests were made at the time because Wear chose not to press charges. But Wear tells Fox 4 that decision came under pressure.
“Because the cop said I was going to go to jail too,” he said.
Fox 4 also spoke with Barret, who declined to appear on camera but claimed he was acting in self-defense.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office confirms the case remains under investigation. Wear says he now plans to press charges regardless of the outcome.
