COCONUT GROVE, FLA. (WSVN) - A South Florida man was forced to undergo surgery after suffering a brutal beating in Coconut Grove, which he said was an attack motivated by hate.
Gregory Breidenbach suffered a black eye and broken bones, but that wasn’t all. He remains in pain emotionally and physically.
“I’m going through a big wave of a roller coaster of emotions from everything that happened,” Breidenbach said.
The victim was walking home in Coconut Grove on Saturday just after midnight when all of a sudden two men jumped him. They called him an offensive slur for a gay man, while punching and kicking him repeatedly and left him for dead.
“My brain has blocked it all out. I do know I was cognizant enough when the cops found me and they said I was lying in the street and that I didn’t have my clothes on.”
7News spoke to Breidenbach just before his preparation for surgery.
“All of my face has to be redone, everything is busted, from nasal cavity, nasal and sinus is separated,” he explained. “My orbital bone has to be repaired, my cheekbone is gone and has to be replaced.”
At the time of the attack, he was walking past Elizabeth Virrick Park, listening to music in his headphones and singing along. But he was dragged and found bloodied and bruised about half a mile away on Florida Avenue and Douglas Road.
“It makes me feel like, ‘Was it my fault? Was I too flamboyant? Was I dressed too nicely?’ Just a ton of emotions,” Breidenbach continued. “Then I get angry, They had no right to do this to me, because I’m just a normal person walking down the street, behaving myself.”
His friends at the Coconut Grove Women’s Club, where he sits on the board, said if his attackers had known him, they never would’ve done this.
“He’s got a heart of gold, he’s very charitable, positive, looking at the best of everyone and everything,” said Billie Baldwin, president of Coconut Grove Women’s Club.
Carol White, a fellow board member of the club, was also shocked at the beating.
“He is one of the warmest, friendliest, he’s got a southern accent, he’s so welcoming,” she said.
Now they and Breidenbach learned a lesson the hard way.
“You have to practice your awareness,” said White, who’s also a self-defense instructor
Breidenbach shared a warning for others who can be susceptible to an attack like his.
“There’s a lot of hate in the world right now,” he said. “Be careful, you can’t even walk in a good neighborhood right now, you’ve always gotta be cognizant of what you’re doing and the area you’re in.”
City of Miami Police said they are actively investigating and canvassing the area where Breidenbach was attacked.
Breidenbach’s friends told 7News that after his storied aired, a neighbor in the area provided detectives with home surveillance video.
If you have any information on this incident, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000.