Report: Battery of man in wheelchair happened after calling teens n-word

Two teens arrested by Lee County deputies on Monday for allegedly hitting a man in a wheelchair in North Fort Myers said the man was calling them derogatory terms, according to the arrest report.

The incident happened outside of Farmer Jack’s at 2249 Laurel Lane and led to the arrest of 18-year-old Jeremiah Perez, a 17-year-old boy, and a 16-year-old girl.

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office initially reported an incorrect age for the second boy, calling him an 18-year-old, but the arrest report showed he had turned 17 about five days prior to the attack outside the market.

WINK News is not naming the underage suspects.

It was caught on video by the girl.

According to an arrest report for Perez, the group went to Farmer Jack’s twice.

During the first trip, the man in the wheelchair, identified as Francis Patrick Kilkenny Jr., catcalled one of the group’s friends, according to the arrest report.

On the second trip, Kilkenny told authorities he got into a verbal argument with the 17-year-old boy, who then punched him on the right side of the face, the arrest report states.

The 17-year-old told authorities he slapped the man because he catcalled his friends and because the man told him “to go back to his country,” according to the arrest report.

Perez told authorities he dumped the trash can on Kilkenny because he called him the n-word.

Perez and the 17-year-old face charges of battery on a disabled adult.

The girl, who recorded the incident, faces a charge of accessory after the fact.