Video captures baby punched in face after men get into argument at store

Warning: Disturbing content.

This is the shocking moment a baby appears to be knocked unconscious after being targeted during a violent argument between his stepdad and another man.

The 8-month-old was hit with a vicious left hook after the aggressor went to punch his victim but missed.

This still frame from the CCTV shows the two men arguing before the fighting broke out.

CCTV footage released by the owner of the supermarket in Argentina where the violence erupted showed the taller of the two men lashing out despite the fact the youngster was in his stepdad's arms, according to the Daily Mail.

The baby was thrown around like a rag doll - first to the left as the initial punch appeared to hit him in the head - and then to the right as his desperate stepdad tried to dodge the sudden attack.

Amazingly, he disappeared out of the vision of the CCTV cameras to leave the youngster before returning for a full-on punch-up.

Staff at the shop in the town of Palmira near the city of Mendoza close to Argentina's border with Chile had to intervene to separate the pair.

This is the shocking moment a baby appears to be knocked unconscious after being targeted during a violent argument between his stepdad and another man.

Local reports initially pointed to the baby's jaw being broken in the horrific attack, although it later emerged the punch had clipped his face and he had not been seriously injured.

The aggressor, named locally as Gustavo Mesa, is now being investigated after the tot's mum filed a formal complaint.

A source close to the investigation told a local paper: "Fortunately the baby has only got a bump on his forehead where he received the blow."

State prosecutor Raul Buscema is said to be awaiting a doctor's report before deciding what crime to charge Mesa with.

The man carrying the child in his arms when he was attacked has been identified as Gerardo Gomez Perez.

The eight-month-old was hit with a vicious left hook after the aggressor went to punch his victim but missed.

Mendoza-based daily El Sol, among the papers which broadcast the footage, said the pair had a long-standing feud.

Investigators refuted rumours the baby had been rushed to intensive care with a broken jaw, saying the blow had "clipped the right side of his face".

Enraged locals have named and shamed the aggressor on a Facebook page called "Prison for Gustavo Mesa".

One said: "I would shot him in both knees so he would have to drag himself around on the ground for the rest of his life."