Cape Town - Boys from a Cape Flats school face disciplinary action and possible criminal charges after a vicious attack on a 17-year-old fellow pupil.
The attack, which took place on the grounds of South Peninsula High School in Diep River on Monday morning, was filmed by the teen’s classmates and has gone viral on social media after being shared more than 1000 times.
The traumatised teen, from Strandfontein, says he did nothing to warrant the attack, which saw a large group of Grade 12 boys repeatedly hitting and kicking him while a friend tries to shield him.
His distraught mother, 36, says the teen spent the next day in bed as he was “too weak” to go to school.
The extent of his injuries is not yet known as his mother has been unable to get him to a doctor.
In the video, one of the boys is seen running up to the teen and hitting him across the face.
More boys join the fight, while screaming pupils egg them on.
“Moer this * ***! Nou is dit die nommer, hosh! (Beat him! That's it!)” a boy is heard shouting.
In a second video, apparently made by a girl, the teen can be seen dragged on the ground by two bigger boys who continue to hit him.
The teen says the drama started at a party in Strandfontein on Friday.
He says boys living in his community got involved in a fight with one of his attackers and he tried to stop that fight.
“I was shouting ‘no, don’t do this’. I don’t know what happened then, but I left. The next day I got messages on my phone threatening me,” he explains.
“When I got on the bus to school, a girl told me that I don’t know that guy’s people and they rob and shoot. I knew I had nothing to do with it so I wasn’t worried. But when I got to school, everyone was giving me funny looks and then during break it happened.”
His phone has been handed to the school as evidence.
The boy showed the Daily Voice a large bump on his neck and complained of aches and pains.
His mother says she received a call while at work from another parent who had seen the video and asked if her son was OK.
“I was upset when I got to the school because they did not contact me. It is a good school and the principal assured me they would handle it,” the mom says.
“I want them to go find the perpetrators who hit that boy (at the party); it was not my son. We want to know why they came after him. I was shocked at the language in that video and am very disgusted.”
Western Cape Education Department (WCED) spokesperson, Millicent Merton, says two of the boys involved have already been suspended.
“The school was only made aware of the altercation on Friday after the incident at school. The school advised the mother of the boy to report the matter to the police and made contact with Diep River Police Station regarding the matter. They are waiting on information from the parent of the boy before a case number can be processed.”
The mother said she would be laying assault charges against the boys.