Florida

Facebook Fight Between Florida ‘Keyboard Gangsters' Ends in Shooting

The victim was shot in the thigh and buttocks

A political argument on Facebook led to a 44-year-old Florida man driving to the home of a stranger he'd been arguing with and shooting him.

Brian Sebring faces felony charges of aggravated battery and carrying a concealed gun. Sebring tells the Tampa Bay Times he "just snapped and let primal rage take over" on Monday.

The Facebook dispute began in a comment Sebring added to a now-deleted friend’s post about Donald Trump. A Facebook user who witnessed the exchange told the Tampa Bay Times that Sebring was "badmouthing felons who couldn’t vote."

A comment by Sebring suggesting people should not conduct criminal activity if they want to vote and have their opinion heard drew hundreds of responses. Alex Stephens, who has a felony record, messaged Sebring directly and the online argument escalated.

Police say Stephens was shot in the thigh and buttocks and was treated at a hospital. Sebring spotted a police officer on his way home and turned himself in.

Sebring says he's ruined his life "all because of some keyboard gangsters."

"I’m not a bad guy," Sebring told the Tampa Bay Times, "but, I mean, this guy threatened to hurt my family, and I went off the deep end. I wasn’t thinking right. You know, after this I’m going to go see a therapist or something, man, because that’s some scary s---, that I could lose my temper like that and do something so stupid."

Attorney information for Sebring was not immediately available. Sebring was released on $9,500 bond.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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