An Iraq war veteran is under investigation after he fought off eight Muslim men who he says attacked his wife.
Kyle Tyrrell, 48, says he got into an altercation with a group if fishermen while defending his wife, Liana. The veteran says that Liana was punched in the face at the Cosy Corner beach after she told one of the fishermen that fishing was banned at the marine sanctuary.
Tyrrell says some of the men called his wife names such as “white slut” and “white whore” by the men. He believes that the attack was racially motivated.
The retired lieutenant-colonel suffered minor injuries, according to Daily Mail. One of the fishermen was taken to the hospital and no charges were filed against Tyrrell.
“I was just protecting my wife and daughter, like any man,” Tyrrell told the Herald Sun, according to the Washington Times.
Following criticism about the incident, Tyrrell posted on Facebook to explain the incident and set the record straight. He said that the men were all Muslim and that he would “do it again in a heartbeat.”
In his post on the Stand Up For Australia – Melbourne Facebook page, Tyrrell said that one of the men took offense to being told told what to do by a woman. Then he began insulting Liana, which she ignored, angering the man even more.
“His mates got close to me and then he made a run for my wife, that’s when I ran at him, he threw a punch which I ducked and the fight started,” Tyrrell wrote. “At no time could either my wife, daughter or I safely walk away. At that point five more joined the fight, one punching my wife as she attempted to get our daughter up the beach.”
One of the men reportedly told Liana, “Your husband needs to teach you a lesson.”
Tyrrell concluded his Facebook, “I would do the same thing again in a heartbeat, in fact I would do the same thing for any woman I saw in that situation not just my wife.”
Tyrrell previously revealed in an interview with the Herald Sun that he has been suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder since he returned from the war in 2011.
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