A Marco Rubio supporter was "brutally attacked" while canvassing for him in Hialeah, the senator said.
Rubio tweeted photos Monday of Christopher Monzon, who he said was wearing Rubio for Senate shirt and a Ron DeSantis hat.
Watch NBC6 free wherever you are
>
WATCH HERE"He suffered internal bleeding, a broken jaw & will need facial reconstructive surgery," the tweet said.
Monzon has been in news headlines in the past, most notably as the only pro-Confederate protester outside of a Hollywood commission meeting where members were voting to remove the names of Confederate generals from city streets back in 2017.
Get local news you need to know to start your day with NBC 6's News Headlines newsletter.
>
SIGN UP
According to an arrest report, the victim said he was in the area of 140 E. 60th Street around 6:30 p.m. Sunday when he was attacked.
The 27-year-old victim told police he was walking around the neighborhood handing out flyers when he came across 22-year-old Javier Jesus Lopez, who was blocking a sidewalk, the report said.
Local
Lopez confronted the victim and told him he couldn't pass through the sidewalk in front of his home, the report said.
When the victim started to walk toward the street, Lopez told him "you can't pass by here, this is my neighborhood," the report said.
"This is public property and I can be here if I want to," the victim replied.
The two got into a verbal dispute before Lopez rushed at the victim, grabbed him and slammed him to the ground, the report said.
Another person came up and kicked Lopez on the side of his face before fleeing the scene, the report said.
Lopez began punching the victim multiple times in the face, causing severe swelling and his right eye to be completely shut, the report said.
Lopez was taken into custody and booked into jail on a charge of aggravated battery causing great bodily harm. Attorney information wasn't available.
Rubio's tweet said there were four attackers and that they told the victim "Republicans weren't allowed in their neighborhood," but those details weren't mentioned in the police report.
Rubio, a Republican and the state's senior U.S. senator, is seeking re-election in next month's election and is facing Democrat Val Demings.
"I have zero tolerance for any violence against any person for any reason, and I wish the Senator's staff and the canvassers well," Demings said Monday as she campaigned in South Florida on the first day of early voting.
Rubio echoed the same message.
"The broader point is that it is unacceptable," he said. "If that was a Democratic canvasser, it would be unacceptable. Political violence is unacceptable no matter where it comes from."
