Videos tend to go viral on social media because they capture a moment that is memorable – a cute, ridiculous, touching, zany, or historic moment that grabs your attention and won't let go. That is not the case here.
The video of Gulf War veteran Albert O'Toole that is going viral right now is grabbing attention because it shows the Alzheimer's-stricken man being abused at a state-run veterans home in Montrose, New York. In a stomach-turning series of events, O'Toole is shown being abused inside the facility by his aide, named in local media as Matthew Cox.
Cox was caught on video mistreating O'Toole after O'Toole's wife, Angela Sangro, set up a hidden camera when she noticed her husband's condition began to decline after he was moved from a federal veterans facility to the one run by New York state. "That was the biggest mistake that I made was moving him," Sangro said.
O’Toole served in the Gulf War, where Sangro says an explosion left him with a traumatic brain injury. Years later, he received a devastating Alzheimer's diagnosis.
She made the difficult decision to place him in the VA as his condition worsened.
Sangro says that at first, O’Toole was thriving at the federal facility in Montrose. But after he was moved across campus to the state-run veterans home, she says everything changed.
Sangro made the decision to place the hidden camera in her husband's room after she noticed he often seemed heavily medicated and agitated during her visits with him; she also noticed bruising and other unexplained injuries on O'Toole.
What she saw on the video horrified her.
The video, now being shown publicly for the first time, begins with O’Toole’s longtime aide yanking food out of his hands.
Sangro describes what seems to happen seconds later on the video.
"He picks him up by his neck and throws him in the chair. And then he forcefully pulls him into the chair and punches him in the side of the face or the neck," she says.
Moments later, the video appears to show the aide striking O'Toole in the head with a broom, before forcing him back into a restraint chair.
At one point on the video, O'Toole can be heard crying out in pain.
"You hear him screaming and nobody comes to check on him. Where are the other aides?" asked Sangro. "I don't know how I missed it. I was there every single night."
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Matthew Cox was subsequently fired from the New York-run facility and arrested for the abuse, but was reportedly still employed by the U.S. Veterans Administration (VA) in a "non-patient role."
The video is horrifying to watch. When O'Toole's fellow veterans saw it, they immediately took to social media to demand action and called the situation "a disgrace."
This is a disgrace.
— John “TIG” Tiegen (@TigTiegen) June 21, 2026
A Gulf War Marine veteran named Albert O’Toole who served this country, took a blast that left him with TBI, and was later diagnosed with Alzheimer’s was beaten by his aide Matthew Cox inside the New York State Veterans Home in Montrose, New York.
His wife… pic.twitter.com/rDmEU9F4P0
This is a disgrace.
A Gulf War Marine veteran named Albert O’Toole who served this country, took a blast that left him with TBI, and was later diagnosed with Alzheimer’s was beaten by his aide Matthew Cox inside the New York State Veterans Home in Montrose, New York.
His wife Angela Sangro became concerned after seeing unexplained bruises and heavy sedation. She installed a hidden camera. The footage shows the aide yanking food out of Albert’s hands, grabbing him by the neck, throwing him into a chair, punching him, and striking him in the head with a broom while he cried out in pain. No one came to help.
The state fired the abuser. But the federal VA? Still has him employed. Still paying him while the case drags on.
You make veterans fight through hell just to get the benefits and compensation they earned with their blood and sacrifice. You move fast to cut or reduce what’s owed to them.But when one of your own is caught on camera assaulting a defenseless veteran? You keep him on the federal payroll like it’s nothing.
@SecVetAffairs you talk about accountability. Here it is. Fire this man from the VA now. No pay. No protection. No more dragging it out.@SecWar our warriors come home broken from fighting for this nation. They deserve better than a system that protects abusers while making veterans fight for every dollar they earned.@SpeakerJohnson this is on you too. Oversight without teeth is just theater. Do your job.This isn’t how you treat the men and women who served. This is a betrayal.Veterans FIRST.Zero tolerance for those who abuse them.Immediate action. No excuses.If you’re not outraged by this, you’re not paying attention.
Semper Fi.
The pressure campaign worked, and VA Secretary Doug Collins promised on Sunday that his agency would "immediately initiate removal proceedings for this employee," while noting that the abuse didn't happen at a VA facility.
Meanwhile, O'Toole's wife wonders how many other veterans are still suffering inside the New York-run facility. "I think people need to hear about it because they need to make sure that their veterans are OK in that home," she says.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, whose administration oversees the facility in question, could not be reached for comment.
Editor's Note: The mainstream media continues to deflect, gaslight, spin, and lie about President Trump, his administration, and conservatives.
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