Seven Asian teenagers have been convicted of brutally battering a schoolboy to the brink of death with a claw hammer. In another incident, a student was impaled on a goalpost.
Clearly teen violence is reaching horrifying levels in the UK. Last week six Asians were found guilty of brutally battering a fellow student close to death. The boy remains severely brain-damaged.
In another incident, a student was impaled on a goalpost.Fire crews had to cut the boy free and take him to hospital with the pole still sticking in his chest. He is now recovering.
A jury at the Bristol Crown Court was told how the Asian youth, from Swindon, travelled to Wroughton in January last year for a fight after being summoned by a friend in a sequence of phone calls and text messages.
Henry Webster, 16, who attended Ridgeway School in Wroughton, Wiltshire, suffered three skull fractures during the violence. One caused him a brain injury and required surgery.
Four teenagers - 18-year-old Wasif Khan, 19-year-old Amjad Qazi and two boys aged 15 and 16 who cannot be named - were found guilty on February 14.
Nazrul Amin, 19, and two other youngsters aged 15 and 16 admitted inflicting grievous bodily harm before proceedings began.
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The jury was told how Henry, a 6ft 2in rugby player with bright red hair, was targeted because he "stood out".
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The Asian group arrived at the school and were heard screaming near the tennis courts, the court heard.
Patrick added: "It was to be a fair fight, a one-on-one - or so Henry thought. But he had not reckoned on the fact it was not to be one-on-one.
"As he came into the playground he was attacked by a group.
"He was knocked to the ground, he was kicked, punched and repeatedly hit over the head with a hammer."
In a video interview filmed six days after the attack, Henry told police that the group had ambushed him.
He said: "I heard screams, then I was punched in the back of my head.
"I was curled up on the floor but they repeatedly kept hitting me.
"Then I felt the hammer hit the back of my head."
He added: "I know it was a hammer because if it was a punch, your vision does not change.
"As I got hit, my vision turned to stars - it all separated, what I could see, because it was so powerful."
Witnesses to the assault saw his attackers run off, punching the air and shouting: "We've done it."
After the attack, teachers were alerted and ambulances arrived at the scene within minutes. Henry stayed conscious throughout the ordeal.
He told the court he was still suffering from the life-threatening injuries sustained in the attack.
Henry said: "The hammer had gone through my head, through my skull and into the fluid in my brain.
"I have been told I will never recover because the brain cells will not reform."
Khan and Qazi, the two eldest defendants, blamed each other for the attack during more than four weeks' evidence.
Khan had claimed that he was under pressure from his local Asian community not to name the teenager responsible.
Referring to the two teenagers who pleaded guilty before the trial, Patrick said they had kicked Henry as he lay on the ground.
Khan was remanded in custody. The other three were granted bail pending sentence.
And on Wednesday it was reported that a 14-year-old boy was speared through the chest with the pole, which was being used as a temporary goal post.
He is in a stable condition at Basildon Hospital where his parents are keeping a bedside vigil.
The pole, made of plastic with a metal tip, was being used to mark a goal and it pierced the side of the boy's chest.
A spokesman for Essex Fire Service said: "The boy was impaled in the chest by a corner flag.
"Crews shorted the pole and left the boy in the care of the ambulance service. His parents were called to the school immediately."
Essex Police revealed a boy has been arrested on suspicion of assault following the incident.
A spokesman for Essex County Council said: "We are working with the school to ensure the pupils and staff affected by this distressing incident receive the support they need.
"We await the outcome of the school and police investigation, but are confident staff at Beauchamps High will have been adhering to national health and safety regulations."
Police officers remained at the school this afternoon after local residents revealed children were sent home following the incident.
One shop keeper said: "It is very shocking. All the children have been talking about how the boy was impaled with some kind of javelin-like pole.
"I have heard he is in quite a bad way."
Source-Medindia
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