A 16-year-old boy is recovering after he was stabbed and beaten by a group of attackers yelling racist and antigay slurs on a popular Southern California beach. Video of the attack has been circulating among local high schools, and the victim’s mother is reaching out for help.
The attack took place on Saturday, February 10, at Dockweiler Beach just west of Los Angeles International Airport and directly under the flight path of departing planes.
The victim’s mother, identified only as Frankie, told local CW affiliate KTLA that her son was attending a party promoted on social media when a friend was attacked by a group of five to six teens.
“My son was helping a friend,” the mother explained. “He helped get her up off the ground and then a guy just asked him to stop and then my son just wanted to help his friend. The guy asked him if he wanted to fight, and my son didn’t want to fight him.”
The group attacked her son, beating and kicking him, and stabbing him three times in the back while yelling racist and antigay slurs.
The attack was caught on a disturbing video that shows the victim lying on the ground trying to protect his head and chest as he is repeatedly punched and kicked by the group of teens. The group can be heard yelling and taunting the teen throughout the attack.
Frankie said her son suffered a punctured lung, a concussion, severe bruising around the face, and internal bleeding that left him in intensive care.
Frankie said video of the attack has been circulating on social media and shared amongst students at local high school. She believes her son’s attackers are students at one of the schools, and she now wants to relocate her family out of fear for her son’s safety.
Police told KTLA they are aware of the video and investigating, but have yet to confirm if the incident is being treated as a hate crime.
A GoFundMe page has been created to help defray the family’s medical and other related expenses at @c4dw9w-donta. The page has currently raised $10,000 of a $50,000 goal.